The Dark Coven
by IzWinchesterDevil
Summary: Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst them...
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter One: A Black World**

The world is a far more dangerous place than it seems. Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst them. Very little of the humans knew of the other beings. In the stillness of the night, the Moon Disciples sated their hunger for human flesh and the Blood Demons slaked their thirst for a certain red wine. The Moon Disciples, as referred to in ancient times, were mortals which were not easily killed. The Blood Demons, as referred to in ancient times, were somewhat immortal and could only die at the hands of their own kin.

The Blood Demons, more commonly known as 'Vampires', aged physically until the appearance of twenty. They could live over a long period of time, which is why they were said to be immortal. The Moon Disciples or 'Werewolves' aged until their time to depart from this world…

The world had changed…in the worst way possible – death rates increased; more people went missing; new breeds of werewolves and vampires were introduced and the population of the enemy increased; all of this remaining secret to innocent ears…

* * *

**Eight Years Ago…**

Slowly, she brought the piece of fruit to her lips and bit in. She could hear the other children laughing at the other tables in the room. She paid no attention to what they said, however. She knew that whatever the other girls conversed about was none of her concern. She kept as quiet as possible to avoid any attraction to herself; to avoid unwanted questions from the others. She became angry when she found that her attempts were to no avail.

"Hello," said a female voice. She did not bother to return the greeting.

"Um…my name is Hana. What's yours and why are you alone?" the female voice asked politely.

"My name is Sakura," she answered plainly but failed to state why she was alone.

"Oh. That's a pretty name. Hey! Our names are kind of…similar!" the girl exclaimed excitedly, "My name is Japanese for 'flower' while yours mean 'Cherry Blossom' – a type of flower. Your name suits you well. It goes beautifully with your pink hair and green eyes. Speaking of colors, what's your favorite color? Mine is green."

Sakura sighed mentally. This girl was rather talkative, but she did not mind, no. Hana's chattering made her think.

Colors – what did she know about colors? Her mother tried her best to explain what the different colors were supposed to be like; the colors that painted the world. It was frustrating that she could not begin to imagine them. From her mother's description, the only color that seemed to be of her liking was black. It was the only color that she saw. Sakura turned to face the direction of Hana's voice.

"No," Sakura began to respond, "My favorite color is black."

"Huh? Why?" Hana asked, having always thought of black as a rather negative color.

"Your world is painted with colors that is said to be beautiful – colors I can neither see nor imagine. The world I see is different. My world is black…I…I am cursed. I can't know the joys of seeing your world. I am blind…" Sakura explained, pausing a little before continuing; "Now you can run away from me like all the other kids…"

Sakura's eyes stared blankly at the floor. She was no longer hungry and judging from how much time had passed, she knew that the lunch hour would end soon. Sakura thought the girl had left quietly, but she was wrong about her assumptions yet again.

"Don't be stupid…" Hana told Sakura, "I'm not like the others. And I don't think you're cursed. No, you're unique. And I want to be your best friend."

Sakura gasped a little, shocked at the girl's words. The two had only met a few minutes ago and now this girl wanted to be her best friend? It was indeed surprising. Why was Hana not like the other second graders? Sakura did not answer the girl.

The bell rang, indicating that the students' lunch break was over. Hana noticed that Sakura did not move from her seat.

"How do you usually get to class?" Hana asked.

"A teacher escorts me," Sakura answered plainly.

"Oh…" Hana replied, "Can I escort you today? I mean…we both are in the same class, right?"

"Okay," Sakura permitted. Sakura could not explain the mixed feelings that were currently bubbling inside of her. Usually, when people found out of Sakura's blindness, they would call her a freak or pity her until she became sickened by it. They never wanted to be her friend; she never was desperate for one either. But Hana made her feel excited for some reason.

Months passed and the two girls became more acquainted with each other. Their bonds grew and soon enough, they called one another best friends. For once, Sakura was going to have a friend over for her birthday. It was that night Sakura turned eight; and it was that night Sakura lost her only family along with her only friend…

* * *

Concealed by the shadows, a lone figure made its way down the streets; a female figure. She did not care of the night's cold rain that soaked her clothing and hair. The thunder cackled, but she was not afraid. The lightening flashed, giving a quick view of sharp, emerald eyes. The woman steadily walked up the concrete steps to her house. Everything that happened that night – the smell of blood; the screams – it was now a mere memory. To her, grieving served no purpose. That was what she had been taught.

"Good evening, Sakura," a silver-haired man greeted under a mask which covered his mouth and nose. He was sitting at the table in the kitchen.

"Evening, Kakashi," the woman called 'Sakura', greeted her sensei.

It happened a long time ago, but the memory remained so vivid in her mind. Sakura Haruno was only eight when her parents were killed by those untamed, bloodthirsty creatures. She was lucky enough to be saved by a hunter, well known to the enemies' world – Kakashi Hatake. It was after that tragedy Sakura gained knowledge of the supernatural beings that she thought never existed. Kakashi adopted her; cared for her…and trained her to become what she was at present – a hunter. Sakura despised the ones that killed her parents. Her hate towards them was an ever-burning flame. And the news of the deaths caused by those bloodsuckers and some werewolves fueled her hate; kept it burning…

"Sakura, a proposal has been made to you by a hunter organization called Dark Coven," Kakashi said, picking up the newspaper.

"What do _they_ want?" Sakura asked.

"They want you to join," Kakashi answered, "The Head of Dark Coven has seen your skills and she is quite impressed."

"Wait – isn't that the same organization _you_ used to work for?" Sakura asked the man while opening the refrigerator. Kakashi nodded.

"I'd rather work solo," Sakura decided.

"That's not such a wise choice…and you know that. In fact, if that is what you decide, then I forbid you from hunting," Kakashi said in a stern, yet calm tone. Sakura grunted. She hated having to always abide by his rules, even if she knew it was the better.

"Fine…I'll see the Leader tomorrow," she said before making her way up to her room to change.

As the world changed, it altered many things along with it. People who discovered the vampires' nature found ways to kill them. That was one of the rare, helpful things of this new world. Kakashi nodded before concentrating on the newspaper once again.

"There's a sandwich in the microwave for you," he told her without making eye contact.

Sakura stood where she was, unmoving for a minute before turning around to where the counter was and at the same time, locating the microwave. It took her three years to master a technique like that. She remembered those years distinctly. And she was thankful to Kakashi for being able to be independent as a disabled person. Everything led back to that night, eight years ago…

"_Sakura…Sakura…" she heard the woman's voice call out to her once again. The voice was cold and venomous. It chuckled. More tears ran down Sakura's cheek. She could not tell whether or not her eyes were open; she did not know where she was located in the house. It felt like one of the rooms. The cries of her friend, Hana, begging for her life, still echoed in her head. She could still remember her mother's voice, telling her to run. No words were heard from her father; she could not sense him. No, he was already dead. The smell of fresh blood polluted her nostrils, mixing with another scent – the smell of her death. She sobbed. She thought of the people raiding her home and massacring the people she loved so suddenly. _

'_What is this madness?' she questioned inwardly. Another sob escaped from the back of her throat. She covered her mouth with both palms for fear that the murderer would locate her by the sound. Then, the sound of footsteps was heard, getting louder and louder as the person moved closer. Sakura's body began to tremble._

_The female's voice chuckled audibly enough to be heard._

_Then there was the sudden sound of running, a halt and then silence. _

_The quiet was broken by a loud 'thud', which emitted a vibration on the floorboards. Sakura stopped weeping._

'_What just happened?' she asked mentally. Though curious, she did not move from her position, fearing that there was still some unwelcomed person in the house. Or persons._

"_Hm…so I suppose there is a survivor after all," said the smooth, calm voice of a man. _

_She did not reply. Her mind was contemplating on whether or not the man could be trusted. Though, what did it matter if she trusted him or not? If he was one of the slaughterers, she would die anyway; no choice involved. _

"_What's your name little girl?" the man asked._

"_S-Sakura," she stuttered. _

"_Well, Sakura, I'm sorry that I'm late. I didn't expect that any vampires would attack your complex," the man apologized. _

_Sakura became confused. Why was this man apologizing? But Sakura's mind bypassed that thought and focused on a previously mentioned word – Vampire._

"_V-Vampire?" she asked, hinting for an explanation. _

"_That's a little too much to explain to a child your age. I suppose the bodies downstairs are your family members?" the man enquired._

_Sakura nodded, trying to hold back the sobs in her throat. She heard him sigh._

"_Sir, if you don't mind…who are you?" Sakura finally spoke._

"_My name is…Kakashi Hatake…"_

Sakura took a bite into her sandwich. After their encounter eight years ago, Kakashi adopted Sakura and trained her hard; taught her of the supernatural world. It was because of that, she could now walk around without having to seem blind; without having to use any sort of aid to get around. After years of training, Sakura was able to become proficient in Vampire Hunting. Kakashi taught her that the blood suckers would always be foes, but the wolves would always be her allies. She could vividly recall Kakashi's exact words…

"_The enemy of your enemy is your ally…"_

Werewolves and Vampires were foes. How was she sure of this? Sakura took the word of a certain werewolf – the one who was currently sitting at the table, still reading the same newspaper. Kakashi, being what he was, despised vampires, but not as greatly as she did.

Finishing off the last bits of her dinner, Sakura downed her cup of tea and carried the dishes to the sink and proceeded to wash them, when Kakashi spoke.

"I'll take care of those. You should rest up. We're leaving for Seattle tomorrow…"

Sakura nodded. She had forgotten that the Dark Coven Headquarters was situated in Seattle.

Walking up the stairs to her room, she wondered what to expect from the Leader of Dark Coven. She had heard of her – the woman called Tsunade Senju, the Fifth Leader of the institute. In the vampire hunter world, said woman was greatly known for her discipline, leadership skills and most of all, her inhumane strength. Tsunade Senju was certainly someone to admire. From what Sakura had been told Tsunade came from a long line of Vampire Hunters. But still, that was not encouraging enough to make Sakura want to affiliate with Dark Coven.

Switching off her bedroom light, Sakura made her way over to her bed, shutting off all that had happened just for the night…

* * *

**A/N: Ok, so this is my next story. I originally planned on doing Dark Coven AFTER completing Quantum of Memory, but I really wanted to know if you guys would like it. So here it is. I promise to all the Quantum of Memory fans that I will hit them with a surprise update very soon. And I promise that the chapters of Dark Coven will be longer – this was just the 1****st**** Chapter. So please, tell me what you think…**

**Thanks!**

**-IzWinchesterDevil.**

**P.S – Please excuse any errors you may find…**


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Two: The Dark Coven Headquarters **

Sakura woke the next morning, only when she felt the sun beams on her skin. She was told that when the atmosphere felt cool, less noisy; when the crickets sounded there presence – that was night. And only when she could feel the sun's warm kisses on her skin in a still cool atmosphere, that would be called the morning.

Sakura brought herself to a sitting position on her bed. Stretching her arms upwards, she yawned. She took a moment to rekindle herself and her thoughts, and that was when she remembered that today was the day she would meet with the infamous Tsunade Senju.

'Does she even know that I'm blind?' Sakura questioned in her head, 'Kakashi must have already told her…'

Sakura walked over to where the towel rack was supposed to be and felt around for the soft material. Then she made her way to where she remembered the bathroom was.

* * *

After her short bath, Sakura headed downstairs where she met Kakashi. Judging from the types of movement she heard, it appeared that Kakashi was handling the luggage.

"Good morning, Sakura," he greeted.

"Morning," she replied, dully, "I take it that you've also taken care of my luggage?"

"Yes…it's organized," he answered.

"How long will our travels be?" She asked.

"Well…depending on the traffic – two hours for the most, by car," he answered, "By the way, there's a sandwich on the counter near the sink for you."

He watched her as she moved to the counter, exactly where the sink was located and thought of how amazed Tsunade would be when she saw Sakura's _actual_ skills. He was certain that Tsunade had never come across any disabled person like Sakura – blind, yet still able to work freely without having to use any assistance. Kakashi had taught her well. He showed her that being blind was no disadvantage. He showed her to see the world differently. She was able to vividly see through deception; her fighting skills, deadly.

Kakashi was amazed by how fast she recovered from her parents and friend's deaths. He believed that it gave her something to live for – a purpose in this life.

"I'm done," he heard Sakura announce, "Let's leave."

"Yes," he agreed and took hold of both suitcases.

The ride was almost exactly two hours long. They only met a little traffic as the entered Seattle. Kakashi pulled into the parking lot of Dark Coven HQ. When the car came to a complete halt, and the sound of Kakashi, pulling up the hand brake was heard, Sakura realized that they had finally reached their destination.

"Sakura, why don't you go on head and wait for me in the building?" Kakashi said.

Sakura's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. What was he up to?

"Fine…" Sakura answered without question, nonetheless.

"To the left of the position you are currently sitting at, is the main entrance. Once you've entered the building, go through the elevator to your right. Go to the top floor, and wait for me there," Kakashi said to her.

Sakura gave a curt nod before opening the car door.

"And Sakura," Kakashi said, causing her to halt, "speak only when spoken to; do not state your reason for being here to any random person…"

"I understand…"

* * *

When she entered the building, Sakura listened for the sound of an elevator which was supposed to be situated to her right. On hearing an audible 'ding', she walked over to the right and entered only when she heard footsteps walking into the elevator.

In the mobile cubicle, she heard the giggling. She counted the different laughter – there were two other females in the elevator. Sakura did not know what they were laughing about; she did not care.

"Excuse me," said a proud-toned voice, "I don't mean to be rude, but I'm curious as to whether or not the color of your hair is naturally pink…"

It was then Sakura realized that she was being spoken to, having been told countless times that her hair color was unusual.

"_And Sakura," Kakashi said suddenly, causing her to halt, "speak only when spoken to; do not state your reason for being here to any random person…"_

Thinking back at Kakashi's last words to her, Sakura assumed that his warning did not apply to the woman's question.

"Yes, it is," Sakura answered bluntly.

"Really? That's awesome!" another girl exclaimed.

"Thanks," Sakura replied, trying to hint that she was uninterested in a conversation with them.

"My name is Ino, by the way – Ino Yamanaka," said the first girl.

"And mine is Temari Suna," said the other girl, who thought Sakura's hair was cool.

"Sakura Haruno…it's nice to meet you both," Sakura introduced.

The elevator came to a halt; Sakura heard the doors open and walked out as soon as possible, avoiding further conversation with the two girls in the elevator. She walked down what seemed to be a hall, judging from the directions the footsteps of others were headed. With the help of her hands, Sakura managed to find a bench where she sat and waited for Kakashi.

As she did this, she listened – she listened to her surroundings; the voices; the movements.

"Dr. Yuma, page Dr. Wakashi…we're gotta prep this man for surgery right away!"

'_Surgery?' _Sakura processed a thought.

She wore a confused expression. Was this not the Dark Coven Headquarters?

"Excuse me, are you Sakura Haruno?" said a female voice.

"Yes," Sakura answered, tilting her head upward to the direction of the voice.

"I'm Tsunade, Leader of the Dark Coven. Will you please follow me to my office?" Tsunade continued. Sakura noted that when Tsunade spoke of the Dark Coven, her tone was low, as if to keep what was being said a secret from certain ears.

Sakura noticed the hall had quiet down. There were not many bustling up and down the hallway as before, making it easier to follow the 'tapping' of Tsunade's shoes against the floor. Sakura began to wonder if Tsunade had known of her eyesight at all, considering that she had not offered any assistance from the beginning. Or was it that she knew Sakura had not needed them? Doors opened automatically.

Very soon, Sakura was seated at what seemed to be a desk. The room was quiet and Sakura could feel the sealing fan above her head, emitting cool breeze as it span.

"Okay. As you may already know, Kakashi submitted a video recording of your fighting skills and slaying abilities –" Tsunade began, but was then interposed by Sakura.

"He did what? I thought he said you were observing me…like spying on me or something. He never told me that his intention was for me to join this organization all along!"

"Yeah…sorry about that, but it was the only way I could have gotten you to give this a try," said a familiar voice. Sakura's head whipped around into the direction from which it came, frowning.

"It's nice to see you again, Hatake," Tsunade greeted the man.

"Likewise," was his reply, "Well, I'll leave you two to get acquainted…"

And with that said, Kakashi exited the office, leaving an inwardly fuming Sakura with Tsunade.

"Well, let's get straight down onto business. Like I said before, I'm impressed with your skills; and I believe that you will be of great value to this organization. So, I'm asking you to become an official member of Dark Coven," Tsunade proposed.

Sakura hesitated for a while. Tsunade could not begin to comprehend the thoughts being processed in Sakura's mind, from her blank expression.

"Name the conditions; privileges, etc," Sakura stated firmly.

"You will need to sign a contract once you've accepted. You will attend a school near DCHQ – all education expenses will be paid by DC. You will be required to follow all orders and cooperate with your co-workers. Sakura, I very well aware of your disability, by the way, but that doesn't change my mind one bit about having you here as a member."

Sakura waited for a while to ensure that Tsunade was finished talking, before asking, "How long is this contract?"

"The contract lasts for how long you want," Tsunade replied, "And by the way, if you haven't noticed, this Headquarters is concealed by the fact that the building is actually a hospital. This is to avoid trouble from government agents."

Sakura nodded in realization. Tsunade continued.

"I'm also the head doctor of this entire hospital…"

Sakura was surprised. She always thought that if she ever had to have a normal life, she would have loved to become a surgeon. And here she was, having conversation with a superior; a slayer that managed the Dark Coven HQ _and_ a Hospital. Right then and there, Tsunade had become her role model.

"Okay, I've made my decision. I'll join," Sakura stated.

Tsunade smiled. If a slayer declined (which rarely happened), Tsunade was never moved – never disappointed. But here, she was more than content that Sakura accepted to proposal. It was as if she felt some form of connection to Sakura. Tsunade found herself admiring the girl from the moment she learned of her history – her parents' death; being born blind and unable to see the little beauty of the world. The fact that Sakura was still able to stand tall even though she had been through tough times, made Tsunade want to teach her.

Tsunade placed a pen into Sakura's hand and moved it onto the document. Sakura was only taught to write numbers and her name. At school, she would read only Braille and do her assignments in Braille.

Tsunade saw the familiar figure through the glass door. He was a member of Dark Coven she was not ready to introduce Sakura to. Tsunade turned to the pink-headed girl opposite her.

"Sakura, there are some things I need to see to now. In the mean time wait here while I summon one of the members to escort you downstairs," Tsunade said as she helped Sakura to one of the seats in the 'waiting-sector' of her office. Then she turned to the glass door and announced, "Come in…Sasuke."

Sakura heard the door open, followed by footsteps. Judging by the sounds of the footsteps, Sakura knew that the person who entered was a man (A/N: There are some Japanese names that can be for EITHER a boy or girl which is why Sakura didn't use the person's name to determine his sex). She said no word of greeting, nor did he. Tsunade spoke, in a tone of great authority.

"Do you have a report for me? I was told that you and your brother were investigating occurrences in Central."

"Hn… The report is simple – the victims were all human, but the attacks were no where close to that of said race'," the man stated.

"So it seems that this case requires our area of expertise," said Tsunade as she fitted her fingers of her right hand into her left, propping her elbows on the desk.

Sakura continued to listen to the conversation, but her attention was more drawn to the man's voice. Words could not describe what it sounded like. Even 'God-like' did not seem fitting enough. His tone was so _alluring _that it would make any regular woman drop to her knees.

Then suddenly, she became curious to _see _the man who possessed such a voice. Was he as beautiful as he sounded? Then again, what _did_ she know about the way a human should look like? She accepted what she had been told by Kakashi – a human is nothing more than a selfish being, believed to commit the most sins in the chain of living things in this world. They can be recognized by their physical appearance; humans were a race – they live, and they die. Sakura was told that vampires share almost the same appearance as humans, though they were totally different races. And vampires' abilities were far more enhanced than that of a human's. _Completely_ out of the ordinary.

Her brows knitted together as another question surfaced her thoughts.

…What exactly was 'ordinary'?

Sakura clutched her head tightly and leaned over in her sitting form. Tsunade and Sasuke did not seem to notice until Sakura let out a throaty sob. Both heads whipped around. In an instant, Tsunade was at Sakura's side.

"Sakura? Sakura!"

Tsunade's voice echoed in the darkness…

"_Sakura? Sakura! Listen to me, sweetie," her mother said in a shaky tone, wiping away her eight-year-old daughter's tears, "I need you to stay calm…c'mon, stop crying baby…Momma's gonna be right here with you…" Sakura's crying eased. She sniffled. _

"_Okay," her mother continued, "on the count of three, I need you to run straight ahead; no stopping. I'll be right behind you, understand?"_

"_Yes mommy," Sakura replied. The heat from the fire was increasing by the minute. The sound of the flames consuming the furniture and household appliances was heard clearly. _

"_Okay…ready? One…two…THREE!" _

_Sakura ran as fast as her short legs could carry her. She kept going straight, without stopping. She had no clue as to where she was headed. She expected that her mother was following behind her and was glad to know that her assumption was right, when she heard the footsteps behind her. _

_Then suddenly, she heard a door slam behind her. She stopped running, realizing that she had just exited one of the rooms of her house. She could no longer feel the presence of her mother anywhere near her. _

_A deafening scream echoed from the closed room. _

_Sakura ran back and stretched her arms out, feeling for the doorknob, but when she found it, she was unable to open the door. Her mother had locked the door from inside…_

* * *

Soon enough, Sakura was able to calm down.

Gasping for air, Sakura nodded in reply.

Tsunade wanted to believe that what Sakura experienced, was a mere migraine, but the stubborn part of her forced her into not accepting that belief. However, she figured that it would be best to confront Kakashi about it instead. She turned to Sasuke.

"Sasuke, please escort Sakura down to the café and get her some water," Tsunade ordered, "I need to speak with Hatake."

Tsunade watched as they made their way out of her office. As stated before, Tsunade initially did not intend for Sakura to meet Sasuke so soon. She did not want Sakura to meet a certain group of slayers in the organization, to be more precise, considering the fact that their kind was responsible for the tragic death of her family.

* * *

The wind was strong on the roof of the hospital. Kakashi stood with his back against the wall. Tsunade leaned on the railings which prevented long, death-falls.

"What is it you wished to discuss with me, Lady Tsunade?" Kakashi asked.

"Sakura," Tsunade began, "It's about Sakura. Clearly you haven't told me all there is to know about her. Well, at least all the _important_ things, Hatake. Just now, in my office, while she was awaiting her escort, Sakura seemed to experience a brief, painful migraine. She was holding her head in her hands, sobbing."

"Hm…so it seems there is no avoiding it after all," Kakashi began, "Sakura has…a sort of mental disorder…"

Tsunade's eyes widened.

"Disorder?"

"Yes…a disorder. Well, at least that's what her doctor classifies it as," Kakashi continued, "Were you interacting with Sakura in any way when she had the breakdown?"

"No, like I said, she was just waiting for me to page an escort for her," Tsunade answered.

"That's your answer right there. You see, Sakura needs to be occupied with something at all times while awake. The doctors said that because of her blindness, it bothers her whenever she can't seem to understand certain things, especially when it deals with knowing what something looks like or distinguishing something that required one to see the object or person's physical appearance."

"Oh…I see. But what I don't understand, Hatake, is why you chose not to inform me about this condition of hers," Tsunade said to the silver-haired man.

"The truth is, Lady Tsunade…the truth is that I never intended for you to know at all," he replied.

"And why is that?" Tsunade inquired, feeling the rage slowly build up inside her.

"I feared that you would cancel your proposal; that you would shun her because of this fault; that you would only focus on her disorder and look down on her like most people do when they find out that she's blind," Kakashi answered.

"Well you're wrong," Tsunade said, before making her way to the door, leaving Kakashi in solitude.

* * *

Sasuke handed the girl the bottle of water. She drank only a little of it and then screwed the cap back on.

"Thank you," she said, "Can I buy you something in return?"

"I don't eat or drink anything from this place," he replied coldly as he referred to the hospital's café. She nodded. It was understandable if he disliked whatever was available at the hospital's café. After that, nothing was said between the two. And by now, Sakura was beginning to feel awkward. Sasuke did not seem to talk much.

"Ah, there you are," she heard Tsunade's voice, "Are you alright now, Sakura?"

"Yes, thank you," Sakura replied. She leaned back into the chair.

"That's good. C'mon, I'll escort you to your car where I trust that Hatake would be waiting," Tsunade said to Sakura, "Tomorrow you will be starting your first day at Konoha High School of Seattle. You'll find that most of your classmates will be from Dark Coven; however the rest of the school knows nothing of the organization. The principal of the school is a very good friend of mine and he knows everything, so don't be surprised if you find him discussing vampire matters with Kakashi."

"Kakashi?" Sakura asked, confused, "Kakashi's going to be at the school?"

"Yes. Kakashi will be your Biology teacher. He decided that since he would be living in a big city now, he needed to have a job to avoid suspicion," Tsunade explained. She continued.

"Kakashi told me that you get along _quite_ well with werewolves. Is that true?" Tsunade asked.

"Yeah. I don't know many of them on a personal level, though. What Kakashi means is that I don't have any problems with werewolves," Sakura explained.

They got into the elevator. The door closed. Sakura assumed that the elevator was empty when Tsunade continued talking.

"That's good because there are a few members – other than Kakashi – who are werewolves."

"Really? That's not surprising, but it's interesting though," Sakura commented.

"Hm. There are two werewolves besides Kakashi, who will be attending your school – Kiba Inuzuka of the Inuzuka Pack and Naruto Uzumaki of the Namikaze pack. They will be in Tenth Grade, just like you, so you'll meet them."

"How come Naruto _Uzumaki_ is of the _Namikaze_ pack?" Sakura questioned.

"That's a long story. I'll explain it to you when we have enough time. Or maybe once you start to know him better…_if_ you become friends with that _brat_, you can find out from him yourself," Tsunade answered. The elevator stopped descending; the doors opened.

As expected, Kakashi was waiting for them by the car, in the parking lot.

The drive to their new home was short, so Sakura assumed that the place was situated very near to the hospital. She sighed.

"What's the matter?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh it's nothing…it's just that I have school tomorrow…" she responded.

Kakashi chuckled. _'Any normal kid would complain like that. It's good to know that at least some parts of her life would seem normal…'_

* * *

Tsunade placed all the documents into their appropriate files, clearing her desk in the process. Sasuke sat in one of the chairs, busying himself with the packet of blood in his hand, sucking it dry.

"Uchiha, I gave you your day's supply of blood already. May I ask why you're still here in my office?" Tsunade questioned the vampire.

"That girl, she's the new member of Dark Coven, isn't she?" he asked, wearing a slightly angry expression on his face.

"Yes, she is. Is there a problem?" Tsunade inquired.

"Her scent bothers me. And from the looks of things, I can tell she's blind. You're losing your reputation, Tsunade," Sasuke answered.

"You haven't seen what she's capable of, Sasuke, so don't be so hasty on judgment," Tsunade snapped. There was silence. Tsunade moved over to her filing cabinet and placed her files in their respective places.

"Tomorrow she will have her first mission with you and a few others. I haven't told her about it yet, but I will. I must ask you a favor, though," Tsunade paused and turned to face Sasuke, making eye contact, "Please avoid having to interact with her for the time being."

"I wouldn't _dream_ of it," Sasuke commented, stoically and Tsunade shot him a look of question that disappeared after a few moments. Sasuke did not bother to explain, so she decided to keep that query to herself.

Instead, she figured there was something _else_ worth her knowing…

"Sasuke, what did you mean when you said that her scent _bothers_ you?" Tsunade asked.

"Her blood…. If I had stayed any longer with her, there was no telling what would have happened…"

* * *

**A/N: Okay! That's the end of Chapter Two! I can't wait to write Chapter three; but I have to update my other story "Quantum of Memory", first. A little more of Sasuke will be revealed in the next chapter. And soon enough you'll learn the races of each character (i.e. who is human; vampire; werewolf…)**

**THIS STORY IS **_**NOT**_** ANOTHER 'TWILIGHT' FICTION!**

**NOTE: I will be accepting Fan-Art for this story, so feel free to PM me if you're interested in drawing a scene, or drawing the characters! The art pieces will be posted on DeviantArt. **

**AND: 10 reviews are required for the next update. I like to get feedback; it's the only way I know if you guys like where the story is going or not…**

**Please excuse any errors you may find. Thank you!**

**NEXT UPDATE: Dec. 16****th**** 2009. **

**- IzWinchesterDevil. **


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Three: First Mission**

"Okay, we are currently at the entrance of the school," Kakashi said, guiding Sakura up the steps to the main entrance. Sakura moved her feet onto each step carefully. Kakashi always gave her a tour around new places that would become a part of her daily life. He even did so when they arrived at their new house yesterday, after the meeting with Tsunade. It was the only way she would be able to move around without any assistance.

"We're entering the building," Kakashi announced to her. She felt the eyes of other students on her. She felt Kakashi guide her towards the left.

"This is the Principal's Office," Kakashi informed before asking, "What have you collected so far?"

"About five minutes from the entrance of the school and at normal walking pace, the Principal's Office is situated to the left," Sakura stated.

"Good," Kakashi said and then knocked on the door twice.

"Come in," announced a man from inside the office.

"Good Morning, Jiraya," Kakashi greeted and closed the door behind Sakura. And then he spoke.

"Sakura, this is Principal Jiraya…" She smiled.

Jiraya observed Sakura closely. He had already been informed that Sakura was blind, after which he organized a program that would teach teachers to understand Braille and anything related to it.

"Is there a problem, Principal Jiraya?" Kakashi asked, noticing the way Jiraya was looking at Sakura.

"Oh no…it's just that, she seems to look a lot like Tsunade…"

This comment certainly surprise Kakashi as much as it surprised Sakura, but they both ignored it as it seemed unimportant.

"Anyways," Jiraya continued and handed Sakura a sheet of paper, "That is your Time Table. Each day consists of five study periods and two breaks – one of which is lunch. The schedule is printed in Braille so you'll be able to understand it."

"Thank you," Sakura said and ran her fingers over the bumpy sheet.

"What's first on the schedule?" Kakashi asked her.

"Biology," she answered.

"Hm…being your teacher for that subject, I'll escort you to class," Kakashi said to her. She could 'hear' the smile in his tone. She chuckled – she knew Kakashi was going to escort her to class whether or not he was her teacher for the first period…

* * *

From the outside, on the corridor, Sakura and Kakashi could hear the laughter and buzzing of conversation going on in the classroom. Noise – something that irritated Sakura very much. Kakashi guided her to an empty seat. She could feel the presence of a student next to her. Whoever it was, they remained silent, thankfully. Sakura was not quite ready for any questions at the moment.

Kakashi cleared his throat, which got the class' attention. All was silent.

_That was_, until…

"Who are you?" shouted a boisterous male student.

"Now, now, don't be impatient…I was getting to that. I'm Mr. Hatake; I'll be your new Biology Teacher for this academic year. And while we're at introductions, I'd like to introduce you all to your new classmate – Sakura Haruno. Sakura, please raise your hand so that everyone can see who you are," Kakashi said.

'_Is he kidding me?' _she thought inwardly. She hesitated a little longer before finally lifting her right hand into the air.

She heard some of the girls gasp and others began to whisper and mumble.

"Whoa! THAT CHICK HAS PINK HAIR!" said the voice of the boisterous male from before. Sakura chuckled slightly. Even if he was noisy, he amused her…a little.

"Okay, quiet down um…?" Kakashi began.

"The name's Naruto Uzumaki, BELIEVE IT!"

"Yes, yes…now I remember…" Kakashi said in a soft tone, silently recalling Naruto's name from a list of Dark Coven members. And from his scent, Kakashi was able to deduce that Naruto was a werewolf.

"Okay…enough with the introductions. Let's begin today's Biology Class," Kakashi announced and smirked when the class groaned, "Today we'll begin a new topic." He turned to the whiteboard and wrote 'EXCRETION' in block letters.

"Today, we'll be discussing Excretion," Kakashi continued…

"Is that the natural color of your hair, _human_?" asked the person sitting next to Sakura. It was a girl.

"Yes…" Sakura answered, noting that the girl called her 'human'.

"Oh…you should dye it or something, 'cause honestly it makes you look like a _slut _or some chick desperately in need of attention," the female insulted.

"_Excuse_ me? What is your problem, _vampire_?" Sakura bit back, keeping her tone down while at it.

"H-How did you know?" the female vampire stuttered.

Sakura did not respond. Instead, she made a mental note to ask Kakashi to move her from her current seat. Why was a _vampire_ in the school anyway? Did Tsunade know about this? Sakura heard the vampire student hiss.

"What is it, Karin?" Kakashi asked.

"May I be excused?" the female vampire asked.

"Sure," Kakashi permitted.

Sakura heard her 'classmate's' chair drag backwards; followed by footsteps. The female vampire called Karin had exited the classroom…

* * *

The other periods, even the break, went by pretty fast. So far, the day was boring, mostly because Kakashi was not around to talk with her. She did not want anyone to figure out that she blind. Presently, it was Lunch Period. Sakura sat alone at the table furthest from all the noise and the crowded areas of the school cafeteria. She picked at her food since she did not have an appetite.

"Hey…you're the girl from the elevator at the hospital!" Sakura heard a girl say. She recognized the voice and tried to recall who it belonged to…

"Hi…Ino – was it?" Sakura asked.

"You remembered! Okay…let's cut the act – I know you're the new member of the Dark Coven; it would be nice if you could join the rest of us for lunch. The other DC members wanna get to know you," Ino explained. So it seemed that Ino Yamanaka – the girl from the elevator was a slayer as well.

At the table Sakura was introduced to the other members of DC; two of which she had already met – Temari Suna and Naruto Uzumaki. She also became acquainted with Shikamaru Nara; Gaara Suna – the youngest brother of Temari; Kankuro Suna – another sibling of Temari's; Hinata who spoke timidly, stuttering in all of her statements; Shino and Kiba.

Sakura had already taken a liking to them. They were all amusing and warm-hearted. She had never felt like this in years. In fact, she had forgotten what it was like to have a friend. Then, Sakura was startled a bit by the sudden uproar in the cafeteria. It sounded more like annoying squeals – cries of anxiety rather than cries for help.

"What was that all about?" Sakura asked her new friends.

"It's nothing to really concern yourself with, but I'll tell you anyways," Ino answered, "Almost all of the girls in this school go crazy over Sasuke Uchiha. Oh…and I forgot to mention that he is also a slayer…"

"I know. I met him yesterday," Sakura told them.

"He talked to you?" Temari asked.

"Yes, but he said very little. He seems to be a person of little or no words," Sakura responded.

"Yeah…that bastard thinks he's all high and mighty because _he's_ a Pureblood!" Naruto said, almost sounding annoyed. But his words shocked Sakura to no end.

"Pureblood? He's a…_Vampire_?" Sakura asked, confused.

"Yeah…didn't Tsunade tell you?" Kiba spoke up.

Sakura felt like crushing something. Tsunade failed to mention that Sakura would be working with the enemy.

'_Working with the enemy,' _Sakura scoffed inwardly, _'How ironic…'_

When Kiba did not receive an answer from Sakura, instantly he knew the level of hate she had for Vampires. Her facial expression even supported his theory.

"Tell me," Naruto spoke, "Why do you hate vampires so much?"

Sakura's gaze became a harsh glare, fixated on the floor; though, she was not aware of it. There was an odd silence amongst all of them as they waited for her to answer. Then, she did…

"Because they killed my parents, mercilessly for their selfish need of blood and slaughtered my first best friend as entertainment…"

No one breathed a word.

And then, as if on cue, Kakashi appeared, and Sakura's new company of friends relaxed.

"Sakura, Tsunade wants to speak with you in the Principal's Office," Kakashi informed her.

"Good," Sakura replied, coldly, "Because there's something I wish to discuss with her…"

* * *

When Sakura arrived at Jiraya's office Tsunade was patiently sitting on one of the chairs near the wall. She stood to greet Sakura respectfully even if she could not visibly see that. She could tell by Sakura's facial expression, something was bothering her deeply. Greatly curious about Sakura's thoughts, Tsunade allowed her to speak first.

"Before I begin, there is something you wish to tell me, Sakura," Tsunade said with confidence.

Immediately, Sakura lost all the bravery she had conjured up to confront Tsunade about her queries. As she recalled, Tsunade did not _ask_ her to speak her mind. It was almost as if she _ordered_ it. A simple statement such as that was able to portray Tsunade's authority. It was then Sakura realized that such a character was to be respected, fearless as she was…

Sakura inhaled, and began.

"Just now I learned that one of Dark Coven's members is a Pureblood Vampire. Why didn't you tell me?" Sakura asked without hinting any sign of rage.

"Now that's where you're wrong, Sakura," Tsunade began, "If I told you that, I'd be lying…because there are four Pureblood Vampires in my organization. I do not work with vampires of noble class or A-Rank Vampires, only the Purebloods. The vampires on our team are trustworthy. I'm aware that I did not inform you about this, but this is so because I have an aim. Not all vampires are enemies. You have to be able to trust some of them, the same way you trust the werewolves. You must bring yourself to realize that there are vampires out there that see things the way we do."

"What was your aim?" Sakura asked, not afraid to show her anger anymore.

"To help you to understand what I just explained," Tsunade replied.

"And I do believe you've already met two of the vampires…" Tsunade spoke again.

"Two? You must be mistaken –" Sakura began, but was immediately corrected by Tsunade.

"Yesterday you met Sasuke Uchiha…but today, as I was making my way to Jiraya's office, I couldn't help but notice they way you were interacting so well with some of the DC members…one of them being a Pureblood Hyuuga – Hinata Hyuuga…"

There was a pregnant pause.

Not even Kakashi interrupted. For the first time, he did not support Sakura; and he did so knowing that it was for her own good. Hating the other race completely would not allow her to accomplish her goals.

"I take it that was all you had to say," Tsunade continued, "I shall explain your first mission to you now. Today you'll be assigned to investigate an abandoned area in Central Seattle – an area large enough for a community of low ranked vampires. You will be provided with weapons to match your skills and capabilities. When you are dismissed from school this evening, you are to meet with Sasuke Uchiha in the cafeteria. Being one of your teammates for this mission, he'll give you details on your way to Central Seattle. Your other team members are Kiba Inuzuka, Shikamaru Nara and Neji Hyuuga. That is all. You may leave."

Kakashi led Sakura to the exit, but he did not leave the office. He knew that Sakura was capable of finding her way back to the cafeteria on her own. As she turned her body to enter another corridor, she felt herself bump into another person. She heard books hit the floor.

"I'm sorry…I was walking too fast…" she apologized immediately.

"It's okay," a girl replied. Sakura knelt to the floor and gathered two of the fallen books and then handed them to the girl.

"Thanks. My name is Tenten. I'm new here," the girl said.

"I'm Sakura and I'm new here as well," Sakura responded.

"Awesome. Well, it was nice meeting you; hope to see you around…"

"Yeah…" Sakura said and then turned on her heels and continued on her way to the café.

As she walked, Sakura frowned. She had not sensed any human presence as she turned onto that corridor. Why? Where did that girl suddenly appear from? And why did it seem that the girl was testing Sakura's abilities?

Sakura heard laughter and mumbling now. She had arrived at the café…

* * *

Later that evening, Sakura waited for the Pureblood Vampire in the cafeteria as she was told. After thinking about what Tsunade said, she decided that she was strong enough to allow herself to trust the vampire members of DC.

Still, she did not understand why a low class vampire was attending this school.

'_Karin…' _Sakura recalled, _'What kind of vampire was she?'_

The café entrance door opened. Sakura presumed that it was Sasuke who entered.

"Let's go," he announced.

She walked in the direction of his voice and followed him out of the café and into the school's parking lot.

In the car, there was silence – as expected from Sasuke Uchiha.

Sasuke recalled everything that Tsunade had informed about Sakura, inwardly – about her tragic childhood; her capabilities – which he had little confidence of – and even her disorder. With the latter in mind, he began to explain the mission.

"Inuzuka, Nara and Hyuuga are waiting for us at a base near the discovered vampire society. It has been confirmed that they're all A- Ranked vampires and due to their presence, the number of human civilization has declined. From satellite captions, Tsunade was able to assign each team member to wipe out certain districts of the area. You on the other hand will be working with me since it's your first mission."

He threw something onto her lap.

"What is this?" she asked.

"It's a headphone that allows you to communicate with the other members of the team. The speaker goes into your right ear," Sasuke answered.

"Is there anything about the mission that you don't understand?" he asked.

"No."

"There's one more thing…" Sasuke continued, "Please don't screw up this mission…"

As soon as Sakura opened her mouth, the car came to a sudden halt. She held her tongue, thinking that she would let him slip just this one time.

As she stepped out of the car, she was greeted but a cold atmosphere. By the sound of the crickets and other creatures of the night, she was able to decipher that it was night time; she could almost _feel_ the darkness.

"You guys ready?" Sakura heard a man ask. He sounded as if he dreaded having to do the mission and lazy at the same time.

"Don't be so impatient," another voice said, a bit further away from the first person's. This voice was smooth with enough deepness to figure that it belonged to a man as well.

"Hey Sakura, you ready for your first mission?" asked a familiar one.

"You shouldn't worry about me, Kiba, but yes, I am ready," Sakura assured. Now that everyone had spoken she new their exact location. To her, during an annihilation or assassination, verbal interaction was important. It helped her to locate her victim and in some cases, find out what sort of weapons they carried. Of course she had to communicate without giving off the impression that she was blind. For those who took her on silently, she simply focused on their foot movements or any other audible sign that would enable her to locate them.

Sakura was given a new change of clothing which she put on inside the sub headquarters. The outfit consisted of pants which allowed her to move freely and spandex tank top. At her waist was a belt, carrying three pouches of cartridges containing silver bullets. Her hands were covered with black gloves. Strapped onto her back was her wakazashi blade – a sword that resembled the Japanese Katana sword; and to her side was her 1970 HK VP70Z pistol which was given to her by Kakashi as a gift long ago.

Everyone was waiting for her outside by the car.

On taking in Sakura's appearance, Kiba whistled.

"Alright…let's go…" Sasuke commanded.

And no one hesitated to follow…

* * *

Sakura could feel the dampness of the soil beneath her feet. And on her skin, were the effects of a slight drizzle. It had been raining before they arrived. Everyone fanned out, off into the directions of the areas they were assigned to.

"Let's move," Sasuke said to Sakura, before running off. Following his footsteps, she did the same. Because he simply ran off without any word about obstacles ahead so she assumed that the area was clear.

They kept running for almost ten minutes before coming to a stop.

Sakura felt the presence of someone other than Sasuke, approaching them ahead.

Sasuke glanced at Sakura to see if she had distinguished that someone was now standing in front of them. Since the mission had started Sasuke held his breath to avoid Sakura's enticing scent. He was pretty sure that the A- Ranked vampire in front of them was almost drunk with her smell. What was so special about her scent? Her blood was different; rich; it was like a street drug that was so addictive, you would go insane if you could not have it.

The other vampire inhaled deeply and his eyes gleamed with excitement and lust…bloodlust.

"You've made a mistake by coming here, love," the vampire said to Sakura.

Her eye brows knitted together to form a frown.

"And you've made a mistake, breathing a single word to me," Sakura replied venomously before charging at the being before her. Simultaneously, she unsheathed her sixty centimeter wakazashi blade and clutched it tightly in her right hand, at the ready.

Then, she felt a change in the wind, like a sudden, swift movement. She stopped running. There was a heat behind her, nearing fast. Turning on her heals, in quick motion; Sakura slashed the head off the vampire's body which was previously sneaking up behind her.

'_They're always so predictable', _she thought to herself as she cleaned the blood off of her silver blade with a kerchief.

Beheading vampires or shooting them directly through the head with a bullet was the only way to destroy an A- Ranked Vampire's soul. The Noble Vampires and the Purebloods were much harder to kill; and she never before had she silenced either kind.

There was now a chorus of hissing. It confused her sense of hearing a bit, but from that she knew that she and Sasuke were now surrounded by other A-Ranked Vampires.

"They must have smelt their kin's death," Sasuke said to her. He was now standing beside her. Sasuke did not change his mind about doubting Sakura's capabilities from just one of her take-downs. She had won only a single battle; not to mention that she only fought one victim. He was not impressed, clearly.

The earth began to shake under their feet making it appear that thousands of vampires were charging, when in actuality, there were only about eighty. But still, the battle was unfair. There was no way two hunters could take care of eighty vampires without backup. Or at least, that was what Sakura thought…

* * *

The abruptness of the sound was what made a thousand chirping birds sound so horrific. It took a minute for Sakura to process that what she heard beside her was not the sound of birds, but electric current. Sakura felt Sasuke sprint forward. The current no longer sounded like birds, but like the cry of an eagle. Then violent screams filled the night's sky.

She had forgotten for a moment that Sasuke was a Pureblood Vampire. She, who had resented the Vampire Race so deeply, was now becoming comfortable with a Pureblood's presence; considering him as her real partner; as human. Yes, she had agreed to work with them, but she had never sworn to create a bond so close that they would be considered to be of her race. Sakura was too enraged with herself to recognize the presence other A-Ranked Vampires behind her.

"You wanna get yourself killed or something?" A woman's voice shouted at her, breaking her out of her train of thought. It took a moment for Sakura to focus on the enemies behind her. Before Sakura could even make forward, the newcomer said, "Take a few minutes to gather your thoughts and to get back into 'battle mode' while I handle this."

The woman was right. Sakura needed to pull herself together or she would get killed. Something about the woman's voice seemed familiar, though. She knew she had heard it somewhere before. Then she heard the sound of metal, clashing; bodies falling to the floor accompanied by screams of agony. This woman – was she a hunter? Sakura did not remember anyone else on the team who possessed that voice. Was she a back-up person? Did she even work for Dark Coven?

Sakura discarded those thoughts for a moment and beheaded a few vampires.

In the distance, Sasuke observed Sakura as he slaughtered, noticing the strange woman. By the looks of things, it appeared that she and Sakura were working together. A lower class vampire lunged at him.

Sasuke pulled his right arm back and announced, "Chidori Nagashi!" And suddenly all the vampire and all the other ones close by fell to the floor, their bodies devoured by the electric current surrounding Sasuke's body. The only being that could kill any vampire without having to behead them or shoot them in the head was a Pureblood Vampire. Every vampire in his area had been killed. He turned in Sakura's direction to see that she and the woman had annihilated their share of bloodsuckers as well.

In a flash, Sasuke was now beside Sakura once again.

"Our district is clear," he announced into the speaker to inform the rest of the team.

"Sakura," he began, now facing her, "care to explain who this is?"

"I don't know," she replied almost immediately.

"Hn…"

"Oh of course you do," the woman spoke.

Sakura gave a confused look and replayed the person's voice once again in her mind.

"That girl on the corridor at school…the newcomer – Tenten," Sakura recalled.

"That's correct," Tenten responded and Sakura could sense a smirk on the woman's lips.

The sound of a sword being unsheathed was heard and within a matter of seconds a blade was placed by Tenten's throat. Sasuke spoke.

"What is your purpose here, _vampire_?"

* * *

**Okay…I'm so sorry this is late. I'll be on Easter break soon, so you'll get about two other updates in about two weeks. I just want to thank everyone who reviewed and subscribed to this story. I've decided that I shall continue to work on Dark Coven as a new installment. **

**For those of you who don't know, my first story is Quantum of Memory. It's 25+ Chapters long and it's ongoing, so please check it out (it's also a Naruto SasuSaku fanfic). **

**AND I'm also accepting FanArt for my stories, so if you're interested, please contact me via a Personal Message, and we'll discuss further. **

**Thanks for reading! AND PLEASE EXCUSE THE ERRORS…lolz. **


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: ****Sasuke/Sakura**** with an equal amount of ****Neji/Tenten****. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Four: Azami**

The sound of a sword being unsheathed was heard and within a matter of seconds a blade was placed by Tenten's throat. Sasuke spoke.

"What is your purpose here, _vampire_?"

"Why should I tell _you_?" Tenten bit back.

Sasuke pressed the blade harder against the flesh of her neck.

"I shouldn't have to answer to you, Uchiha. This was supposed to be _my_ hunt!"

"Hn…so you're a hunter…"

"And what if I am? You Purebloods think too highly of yourselves!" Tenten scoffed.

Sasuke sheathed his kusanagi. "If you don't belong to a hunter organization, then I'll have to kill you," he said to the female vampire.

Tenten blinked. "So what's stopping you from doing that, now?"

Sasuke said nothing in reply. Instead, he turned on his heals and began walking in the opposite direction.

"I think he means to give you a chance…to find yourself in an organization," Sakura spoke up. She turned to follow in the direction of Sasuke's footsteps, but before taking a step forward, she said, "Thank you for your help earlier, though it wasn't needed."

The statement was cold, but Tenten accepted the thanks nonetheless.

**

* * *

**

Sasuke entered Tsunade's office with files in his hand. Sakura followed behind him. She stood to his right while he submitted a report on the mission to Tsunade. He even included Tenten's unexpected appearance during the hunt.

After hearing Sasuke's details on the mission, Tsunade turned to Sakura and asked, "So how was your first mission?"

"I-" Sakura began to say.

"Her presence in the hunt didn't make a difference," Sasuke interrupted, "Like I said before, Tsunade, you're losing your reputation…"

"You are dismissed, Uchiha," Tsunade informed, in a commanding tone and ignored the unnecessary part of his statement. Sasuke said nothing else, and slammed the door behind him after exiting the room. Tsunade grunted at Sasuke's sulkiness and arrogance, and then looked at Sakura. She asked the question again.

"Sasuke was right. I wasn't of much help tonight," Sakura responded, "I got a little too caught up in my thoughts."

"And this girl – Tenten – she attends your school; am I right?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes. I met her this morning when I left Principal Jiraya's office," Sakura explained, "She said that she was also a newcomer at the school. She sounded truthful; and from what I've encountered – the fact that she saved me – I can tell that she means us no harm."

Tsunade interlocked the fingers of her right hand into the ones of her left.

"I see. I'll assess her skills and depending on how good she is or what type of skills she possesses, I shall convince her to join the Dark Coven. Ino will meet you at the exit to escort you to DC's mansion. You're dismissed.

"Why can't I go to my house?"

"Because Kakashi is running a few errands outside Seattle. He won't be back until next week and specifically informed me to have you stay at our apartments…whether you like it or not…" Tsunade told her.

Sakura was not too happy with Kakashi's orders, but she did not seem to have any choice other than to abide. Just as Tsunade said, Ino was awaiting her arrival at the office's exit. Sakura could feel her bubbly presence. Ino enquired nothing about the mission. Sakura figured that it must have been because she was eavesdropping on the conversation that went on in the office.

The entrance to the Dark Coven's mansion led them into the living room.

"Have a seat while I fix us something to eat," Ino said, helping Sakura to the sofa.

Sakura knelt backwards, allowing her body to fall onto the cushions. She felt as if her rear would not stop sinking into the soft, comforting material. It was only when the rest of her body felt pampered, did she realize how badly her feet were aching.

Ino returned with two cheeseburgers. She chuckled at the sight of Sakura, hungrily biting into her sandwiches.

"I can see that the mission took a lot out of you," Ino remarked. Sakura only smiled in reply. Her mouth was too full to answer.

After finishing the last few pieces of their late dinner, Ino said to Sakura, "Come on…I'll show you your room."

As she gave Ino the dishes to take to the kitchen, Sakura got the awkward sensation of a fixated heat on her forehead. The feeling was too familiar – she knew she was being watched.

"Azami?" A male's voice said, almost sounding shocked. And then suddenly the guy was approaching her…

**

* * *

**

"Itachi, what a surprise!" Sakura heard Ino said as she returned into the living room, "I didn't think you'd be staying at the mansion tonight. Anyway, I see you've met Sakura; she's the newest addition to the organization. Sakura, this is Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke's older brother."

Sakura stood up and tried to face Itachi, judging from where his voice came.

"Nice to meet you," she said in her best 'normal-teenaged-girl' voice while extending her right arm. Itachi shook it.

"Same here," he replied, "I'm sorry about earlier. I mistook you…for someone else…"

"It's alright," she replied and said nothing after that. Then, the most odd happened. For the first time, she found that being able to describe something to herself, was very difficult. For a moment, there was a flash of what others called 'an image' in her head. The figure was weird. It had colors; ones that she could not recognize. The image's features were also foreign to her, but somehow, at the back of her mind, she knew that it was a _human being_.

"Sakura?" she heard Ino say and immediately snapped out of her train of thought.

"Yeah…sorry. I zoned out," Sakura apologized.

After the encounter, Ino showed Sakura to her bathroom which was situated in her bedroom. There was pleasant warmth that emitted from the bathroom's walls. It was very welcoming – a feeling she had been deprived off ever since her childhood tragedy.

"Once you enter the bathroom, and make a left turn, you'll be facing the mirror and the counter. To the left of the counter is your Apple Blossom Shower Gel and to your right is your Apple Blossom Shower Crème. I hope you like them. I got them at this new cosmetic store down town. The bath supplies there look really cute," Ino said, trying to make Sakura feel a bit more comfortable.

It started to rain.

"I guess I should leave you to get cleaned up and rested. After all, we still have school tomorrow," Ino said lastly, then left.

Sakura felt around for the bathtub and other necessary things before actually getting down to taking a bath.

She sank her body into the foamy water, leaving her head out to breathe. First she experimented with the bath gel. It was as cold as the water in which she bathed. It left a sticky, slimy feeling on her skin. She washed off the substance and applied the Bath Crème.

The bath crème was warmer and more soothing; and left her skin feeling like silk – much to her liking. It put her in a frame of mind for sleep – which she found odd. After the day's events, sleep was the last thing she wanted; the last thing she felt for. The fact that she was unable to take down a decent number of vampires and the fact that she needed assistance was troubling enough to make her want to train harder to become stronger.

The rain continued to fall, becoming heavier. She always loved the rain; she loved to lie in bed with the covers over her body and just listen as raindrops fell on the rooftop. It was comforting and also the only time she could think ponder wildly without having to worry about her disorder, somehow. Sometimes she would just meditate on the sound of the raindrops.

She closed her eyes and tried to forget her mission. But then she remembered an earlier situation.

'_It was strange…for a moment, I could 'see'…a man' _she recalled.

"Azami…" was the name he called her.

**

* * *

**

"Are you certain?" Tsunade asked as she paced her office's floor.

"Am I ever wrong?" the man asked in reply.

Tsunade had not intended for the situation to play out so quickly. "It's too soon, Itachi," she said, "Sakura has only officially joined the Dark Coven today. Let's give her some time to settle in. We can wait –"

"The Prophecy will not _wait_, Tsunade. Sakura Haruno must see The Oracle tonight," Itachi interposed. He was now standing and infuriated. Tsunade said nothing to him; she merely looked into his emotionless, onyx eyes.

"Very well, I'll send someone for her. But I don't understand why you're getting so worked up. You know, she isn't Azami no matter what the Prophecy foretells," Tsunade said.

"I know –"

"No you _don't_," said a voice from behind.

"Sasuke," Itachi acknowledged, turning his attention to his younger brother.

"We will follow Tsunade's strategies as planned. You once told me that, brother…"

There was a long silence. Itachi said nothing to disagree with what Sasuke had said and Tsunade did not dare get herself into such an argument between the Uchiha brothers. Then, in the blink of an eye, Itachi was gone like a moment…

**

* * *

**

The air smelt of smoke and murderous chants echoed through the atmosphere.

She opened her eyes.

People carrying enflaming torches encircled her. She looked up to her hands – they were bound; bound to the pyre…and so were her feet.

"Please…don't kill me," she begged the raging crowd.

"Silence, witch!" commanded the priest.

"I'M NOT A WITCH! PLEASE, YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE ME!" she cried.

Endless tears fell from her eyes. Pleading was all she could do, even though she knew that her efforts would be entirely futile. The ropes were too tight to break free from. Then one by one, people of the crowd began to throw their torches on the heaps of hay surrounding the pyre to which her helpless soul was bound. The men and women spat on her; cursed her and some even hit her with their flaming torches.

Through squinted eyes, she could see a short, middle-aged man, forcing his way through the crowd.

"Stop, please! Priest Ansem, please don't kill Azami…please don't kill my daughter!" the man pleaded. He was now on his knees, at the priest's feet.

"She is no longer your daughter, Daisuke," Priest Ansem told the father.

"Don't cry father, at least I'll dye knowing that you believed that I was innocent," Azami said to her grieving father. But he continued to weep…

She looked toward to black sky. She could almost feel his presence. She knew he was near; she could hear him, rushing through the trees in god-like speed. Silently she prayed that he would not make it, for his own sake. She knew he needed to live.

"I'm sorry…Itachi…"

**

* * *

**

Sakura's body jolted forward, drenched in sweat. She was panting for air as if she had been choking. She felt around the bed with her hands in attempt to convince herself that she was awake. And in doing so, she re-collected her thoughts.

'_That dream…felt very much alive,' _she thought to herself. The feeling of the heat from the flames on her skin; the emotional distress; the fear – it all seemed so real. And to make things even more suspicious – Itachi was involved. She sat there for a moment. The images, the cries – they all replayed in her head.

With a sigh, Sakura threw the covers off her body and got off the bed. She needed a glass of water.

The rain had reduced to a mere drizzle, she noted, as she made her way down the hall. She proceeded to turn the corner into the kitchen, when a loud 'thump' emitted from one of the bedrooms to her right, stopping her in her tracks.

The sound came from the room she had just passed and headed toward it to ensure that everything was alright with the person in there.

She knocked twice; no one answered.

She raised her hand to knock a third time, but before her hand could touch the wooden surface, the door clicked open.

"What do you want?" a not so foreign voice asked aggressively. And it surprised Sakura to know that this particular person was living here.

"I heard a noise from this room and just wanted to know if everything was alright, Karin," Sakura explained plainly.

"Everything's fine. Leave," Sakura heard Sasuke say, coming from behind Karin.

That was when Sakura smelt it – the faint stench of blood. Then it became obvious to her that she had just interrupted Sasuke's feeding session.

"I apologize," Sakura said and continued toward the kitchen.

**

* * *

**

In the morning, everyone prepared themselves for school like normal school kids. Ino made pancakes for breakfast and served only the humans at the table. Karin was slumped down on the sofa, complaining about something Ino told her off about earlier. And at that very thought of Karin, Sakura remembered her interruption last night, causing her to visibly shudder.

"What's your problem, blind girl?" Karin asked.

"None of your business," Sakura snapped and drank down her orange juice.

"Don't be surprised if you get your ass kicked sometime soon," Karin continued to speak, "Because Sasuke was very upset after you interrupted him yesterday…"

"That idiot is the least of her worries, believe it!" Naruto almost screamed at Karin. He jumped off the counter.

"Naruto's right," Ino supported and then faced Naruto, "Now clean up that mess you left on the counter you dumbass!"

And instantly, a frantic Naruto began to wipe up some juice he spilt on the kitchen counter.

Ino settled down at the table and began to chow down her breakfast. Sakura had never felt so at home in a long time, even during her time with Kakashi. There was a difference here. Eating at a table and sharing a meal with others; conversing with them and conducting life together made her feel like she had a family again. A glowing flame was now sparking to life once again, spreading a warmth that was absent for a far too long time.

Everyone's heads whipped up at the sound of footsteps entering the kitchen.

"You're late for breakfast, teme," Naruto greeted the intruder.

"Hn," was the familiar reply.

"Yeah…that's totally not like you, Sasuke," Ino added.

"Leave the guy alone, Ino," Kiba said before yawning, "We _all_ know that sex is vital for his survival, _don't we now_?"

With that said, Naruto and Kiba busted into a fit of laughter. Ino giggled wholeheartedly and Shikamaru laughed a little, in between. Karin kept quiet.

Surprisingly, Sakura could not help herself. She found herself laughing softly, even though she did not catch the joke in Kiba's statement.

Silence befell immediately once again when Sasuke grunted loud enough for the others to notice.

"We'll be leaving in five minutes, Naruto," said another voice. They were all too caught up in laughter to even notice Itachi's entrance.

"Sakura," Itachi continued, "Tsunade has requested that you take a ride with us…"

Without hesitation, Sakura gathered her possessions and followed Itachi, Sasuke and Naruto out the house…

**

* * *

**

At the school's entrance doors, Sakura and Naruto met up with Ino and the others. Hinata and Neji had just arrived as well. Everyone's first class commenced precisely at eight. Ino and Sakura had the same class together – Chemistry – so she accompanied Sakura to the classroom and saved her a seat right next to her.

"I didn't know you'd be into the Sciences," Ino said to her, "What occupation are you considering?"

At that question, Sakura distinctly remembered a familiar person – one of the people she wiped out of her memory eight years ago.

'_Hana…'_

Her very first best friend…

_"Hello," said a female voice. She did not bother to return the greeting._

_"Um…my name is Hana. What's yours and why are you alone?" the female voice asked politely._

_"My name is Sakura," she answered plainly but failed to state why she was alone._

Sakura had vowed to never have another, no; that would just bring the pain back again. She admitted openly to herself that she was afraid of losing anyone close to her. That was way she avoided close relationships with anyone.

"I'm hoping to study Medicine," Sakura answered Ino, "And become a surgeon…"

"Oh! That's just like Tsunade! And that's my aim too!" Ino nearly squealed.

"Alright class. Let's begin," said a surprisingly recognizable voice.

"Um…Sakura," Ino continued, "I forgot to mention earlier – Itachi is our Chemistry teacher…"

It took a while to settle in. Why did it feel as if Itachi was haunting her? Maybe fate was telling her to confront him about her little premonition. Maybe he had answers; after all, he was involved in it.

"Today we'll investigate the chemistry behind corrosion…" Itachi said at the far end of the classroom.

Somehow Sakura felt that Tsunade and Kakashi had been hiding something from her. But she could not put her finger on it because Kakashi never hinted her of anything during her training years with him back at Cle Elum.

"Ms. Haruno," Itachi said, bringing her back to the Chemistry classroom, "Is everything alright?"

"I'm sorry, Sir…I spaced out. It won't happen again," she apologized. Itachi resumed teaching.

The following class was math with Ms. Kurenai Yuhi. And proceeding after that was the lunch break. Everyone including Temari and her siblings sat together at the lunch table.

"Hey guys, listen up," Ino began once again, "So I was thinking that we need to give Sakura a proper welcome into the organization."

"Sure, what do you have in mind?" Temari asked.

"Hmm…Sakura, would you like to hang out with us at the mall this weekend? It'll be fun!" Ino suggested.

"Okay," Sakura agreed. She had never been out with other people besides Kakashi; but that was usually when they needed to get grocery items and other necessary things like that. She never really was able to enjoy shopping as a leisure activity.

While Ino went on to rattle about the things she would buy, Sakura thought about consulting with Itachi. During Math Class that was all she could think about. But now…now she felt ready to do it.

"Does anyone know where Itachi's office is?" Sakura asked the group.

"Er…yeah," Naruto answered, "Why?"

"I need to ask him something I really don't understand. Is it okay if you escort me to his office?" Sakura half lied.

Naruto complied. As they approached the room which was used as Itachi's office, they could hear muffled voices coming from the interior. They door was opened widely, so Sakura eventually saw who Itachi's current visitor was. Sasuke and Itachi appeared to be in the middle of an important discussion, but immediately fell silent on detecting Sakura's presence.

"Hey Itachi, Sakura wants to talk to you," Naruto said rudely.

Sasuke shot his older brother a warning look before exiting the office.

"Are you sure you're okay on your own now?" Naruto asked Sakura and left with Sasuke when she assured him that she was fine.

Now it was just her and Itachi. Sakura did not feel the least bit scared, no…never. She could never be afraid of a vampire.

"Was there something you wished to talk about?" Itachi asked, getting right down to business. She took a short moment to gather her thoughts before replying.

"Yes. I want to discuss last night. After my late dinner, you called me by the name 'Azami'…Who was she?"

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. You must have heard wrong, Sakura," Itachi contradicted.

"The woman called Azami appeared in my dream last night," Sakura continued despite Itachi's statement, "I saw her die…"

Itachi's eyes widened at the girl's words. He remembered that night.

"You 'saw' this woman's death? That's impossible. You're blind," Itachi responded, continuing to pretend as if he did not know the woman Sakura spoke of.

"No…I didn't see her die, no…" Sakura corrected herself, "_I_ was Azami. _I _was dying…in the pyre…"

A smirk played across Itachi's face and even though Sakura could not see it, she could _feel_ it; she could _hear_ it in his voice. "Sakura Haruno," Itachi said, "In time, you will unravel the truth. But for now, be patient. We can't have you learn anything too quickly…not when you're not ready. Now if that was all you wished to discuss, then you may leave."

Sakura did not know what to say. Itachi had given her a speck of a hint that there was something odd and simultaneously assured her that he and a few others – presumably Tsunade – were aware of it. But at the same time, it sounded as if he had just told her off. Wordlessly, she left the Uchiha's office…

**

* * *

**

"You never were spying type, Sasuke" Itachi said, as his brother came through the window. He turned to face the younger Uchiha who said nothing as he settled himself at his older brother's desk.

"You know, brother, I'm starting to think that you were right. Maybe she is ready to hear the Prophecy," Sasuke said in monotone.

"Hn," Itachi replied and walked over to the small refrigerator he had at the corner of the room and took out two blood bags. He threw one to Sasuke and then bit into his one. "So what are you going to do?" Itachi asked, "Are you going to convince Tsunade to let Sakura hear the Prophecy?"

Sasuke sucked out the last few drops of blood from the bag before replying.

"No…"

**

* * *

**

Lunch was over. Sakura had two more classes before the school day came to an end once again. Her Biology class would definitely be a free period due to Kakashi's absence. However there was a possibility that Principal Jiraya could have appointed a substitute.

She made a mental note to ask Tsunade about Kakashi. She had not heard from him ever since he left for his mission.

Just then she felt a tight grip on her arm, followed by a forceful pull, backwards. She would have stumbled if the person behind had not steadied her.

Startled, she asked, "Who are you?"

"Hn, be quiet," Sasuke said to her, "…and come with me –"

"No!" she protested.

"You want to find out the truth behind 'Azami', don't you?" Sasuke asked her stoically.

"Yes," Sakura answered almost immediately.

"Then come with me and be quiet…"

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! Now before I say anything about the story, I just want to apologize for such a long wait. School got the better of me. But now I'll be updating often as it's summer time. **

**The next Chapter is entitled: **_**The Oracle and the Prophecy**_**. Chapter five will reveal a HUGE part of this story so you guys can challenge yourselves with predictions. But keep in mind that a story by IzWinchesterDevil is **_**not**_** written without a **_**twist**_** (chuckles). **

**For a quick update, 10 REVIEWS are required for this Chapter. I like to get feedback from my readers because it's motivational and even helps me to stay on the right track so my story always has your attention. I hope you enjoyed reading!**

**Oh, and I hope you guys did not mind the errors!**

**-Iz. **


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Five: The Prophecy – Death and Rebirth**

Sakura felt clueless as Sasuke guided her through what seemed to be a hallway. The place was quiet but there was a strange aura that bounced off the corridors' walls. She could not quite put her finger on it since it seemed so unfamiliar to her. She continued to focus on keeping up with Sasuke's ridiculously fast pace so that she would not stumble. She cringed slightly at his tight grip on her arm.

"Where are we?" she inquired as they walked.

"Thorns Asylum, Central Seattle," Sasuke answered still pulling her as they rushed down the hall.

"An asylum – why did you bring me to an asylum?" she demanded to know, but Sasuke did not respond. Then forcefully, she wringed her hand, free from his grasp and took two steps, backing away from him.

"Answer me," she commanded.

They both stood still, in silence. Sakura could feel him glaring hard at her.

"You wanted answers, didn't you?" he finally said and Sakura did not respond. Then there were footsteps, very faint but audible. He was walking towards her. But for some reason, she remained rooted to the ground. Her mind longed to move, but her body did not obey. It was as if she was trapped in an illusion, but at the same time it was not; because in reality, she _wanted_ him to approach her. It was a queer feeling, but at the back of her mind, she knew it was dangerous.

"In this asylum resides the only person who can make you understand the answers to your questions," Sasuke explained and took hold of her hand once again, "I will say nothing more."

And then, they continued down the hall in quietness.

* * *

"He what?"

Tsunade slammed her fist on her desk, nearly smashing the beautifully polished wooden surface. Her brows were knitted together to form an angry frown. Her amber eyes almost looked red, burning with rage.

"She's very much ready to know the truth, Tsunade," Itachi said to the woman as he took a seat opposite her. He continued to speak when he was comfortable. "We couldn't wait any longer. Should the chartered events occur earlier than predicted, we'll be more than prepared to face them."

He did not look at her, on feeling a tad bit of guilt for breaking his promise to follow Tsunade's orders and work as she planned. Instead, he calmly kept his eyes closed.

Tsunade found her voice once again.

"But that's all you think about!" she spat, "You care nothing for her well being. What if she can't emotionally handle what she's about to hear? What if she's _not_ ready?"

He opened his eyes; his onyx ones met her fiery amber orbs.

"She is ready," Itachi said with much confidence; his tone at a normal level.

"And how are you so sure, Uchiha? Because if I recall correctly, you have no power of telepathy," Tsunade inquired bitterly.

"Hn," Itachi smirked, "Because Azami is ready…"

* * *

Kakashi scoured the rooms a second time in disbelief. He had been dispatched to investigate the vast depopulation of humans in a fairly large town called Costin Town in Kennewick, Washington. Two days later – after the report of the missing humans was made – Field Agents from DCHQ who had been keeping lookout at the location stated that they had seen many people; continuing their daily routines as if nothing had happened.

But now – as he busted the doors to homes and searched through every closet; every cupboard and every room – he wondered if it was possible that he and his team were led into a trap.

At the moment, in the town called Costin Town, there was not a soul or fly to be found.

Kakashi felt uneasy. Had he fallen for a trap? No, he would have sensed something earlier. What if it was made so that he could not? Then, the mastermind behind it all was no mere Level D-A vampire. No, this would only mean that the chess master was a Pureblood.

Kakashi spoke into his radio. "This is Kakashi. I want every member of the team to retreat slowly. Don't make it seem like it, though. And keep all senses open – this may be a trap."

With that said, he placed the device into its respective holder on his belt and then bee-lined for the town's exit.

* * *

Sasuke came to an abrupt halt and felt Sakura bump into him. Ignoring that, he turned to the guard who was assigned to keep the enemy from stopping the Prophecy from being unfolded. The grinning man before him was a familiar face – one he tried to avoid very much because of his…_stench_.

"Kiba," Sasuke acknowledged.

Yes, Kiba's scent was not exactly appealing to a vampire's nose. No werewolf was.

"I see you're keeping a shift at this time," Sasuke continued.

"And I see you've brought the queen to get business started, Uchiha," Kiba responded.

Even though they were supposed to be students, Tsunade preferred that the strongest of the group of vampire hunters guard the doors to the Oracle's lair. If the Oracle was to fall into the wrong hands or be killed, tragedy would befall them all and the world would be led into chaos and decadence.

Sasuke noticed Sakura's silence and remembered her disorder. On that thought, he nodded to Kiba and gestured for him to open the door by glancing at the door.

Nodding once Kiba complied and Sasuke took Sakura by her wrist and they both entered the room.

The room was they way he remembered from his last visit centuries ago – walls all white; it was large enough to contain a kitchen, a cubicle for a bathroom and another for a toilet and a bed near the corner of the room, beside a nightstand.

Once they had entered, Kiba shut the door. At a desk about two meters away from the bed, sat a woman who looked near the age of twenty. However, looks can be deceiving. Yumi Komagata was no where near the age of twenty. Dressed in a traditional black satin kimono, with golden cherry blossom patterns, the geisha-like woman never aged since her twentieth birthday. She had been living since before Sasuke's birth in the fourteenth century.

In those centuries, Yumi was called the Night Witch by the people of the village she had belonged to because she never aged. But no one ever learned the truth about her or why a community of people protected her so highly.

"So we meet again, Uchiha," she said, not taking her eyes off whatever was on the table before her.

"I've brought Sakura. She's ready to hear the Prophecy," Sasuke responded and gently pushed Sakura forward...

* * *

Sakura's mind was overpopulated with questions since she stepped foot onto the Asylum. But now…now she felt as if her head would _explode_. This Prophecy Sasuke spoke off – Tsunade never mentioned a word about it; or Azami…

The woman they came to visit spoke to Sasuke once again.

"I don't…_feel_ as if she's ready to know, young Uchiha."

'_Who is this woman?' _Sakura thought.

"She is. If she doesn't hear the Prophecy now, her nightmares will drive her insane. We wouldn't want that, now would we?" Sasuke spoke again and Sakura wondered how he came to know of her nightmare. Shrugging the thought off, she spoke up, "I haven't the slightest clue to what you two are discussing. I came here for answers…and I want them now."

"It's a pity that you don't even know who you are, Ms. Haruno," the woman finally spoke to Sakura, "The young vampire here told me that you been having nightmares, correct?"

"Yes."

"How long ago have they started?"

"Since last night," Sakura answered, feeling as if this was some therapy session.

"Please have a seat," the woman said.

Sasuke directed her to the chair and Sakura flopped down, crossing her right leg over the other.

"So you're blind," the woman noted bluntly. Sakura had no comment, though. She was used to people commenting about her disability or pointing it out in disbelief when they realized it. She brought herself to understand years ago that this was the way she was born and there was nothing she could do to change that; nothing she could afford, that is.

"Sakura Haruno," she continued, "there is no better way to give you the answers that you seek than to show you everything…"

"How _can_ you _show_ me? I cannot see, remember?" Sakura said.

"Foolish girl…do you have any idea who I am? No, you don't, so don't question my abilities," the woman said, annoyed. She continued but this time, she got out of her seat and began pacing.

"My name is Yumi Komagata – better known today by the few who know me as the Oracle. My mother, Yume Shiba had a gift to see the future. She was a regular human and her parents kept her skill hidden to anyone in the village. At that time, the vampire community and the other supernatural communities had been underground, hidden from any human being. One day she saw something that would change the course of the world. Her vision was clear enough – she'd seen faces and places – so, after a few years, she set out to find the people in her premonition. When she found them, she learnt of beings such as vampires and werewolves. A Pureblood vampire by the name of Fugaku Uchiha married her off to a sorcerer by the name of Usui Kisuke. Months after her marriage she had yet another vision; one in which she had foreseen her child being the key to a great revolution in the world of humans and supernatural entities – I would one day become the Oracle. Soon after, Yume became pregnant and in due time, she gave birth to me. The minute I was born, my father cast a spell on me to ensure my longevity; and of course, I inherited my mother's gift. I cannot die unless I reveal the Prophecy to the Prophetic Child… "

"And what does this have to do with me?" Sakura asked, honestly having no clue.

No one answered. In fact, the silence itself, gave the answer.

"N-No…you're mistaken! I'm _not_ the Prophetic Child!" Sakura protested.

"Then explain how you've come to know Azami, Sakura," Yumi said, "Because no one ever spoke of Azami since the day she died…"

"Now I see why they keep you in an Asylum," Sakura said to the woman. She got up from her seat. After calculating where the exit should be, she made a move to head for it, but was immediately stopped by Sasuke.

"You said you wanted answers. I brought you here for the sole purpose of getting them…so, do _not_ tell me that I've wasted my time," Sasuke said angrily, though not raising his voice.

* * *

Sakura stopped moving on hearing the anger in Sasuke's words.

"Why does this matter to you so much, besides the fact that it concerns the vampire community?" she asked him, "Why do you need me to hear this Prophecy so badly?"

Sasuke did not answer her. To Sakura, it appeared that he was ignoring her. Honestly she felt a bit stupid. Did she really expect him to answer her question? _'What an egoistical bastard,' _she thought, _'it wouldn't be surprising if he felt too superior to answer to humans…'_

"Why don't you have a seat, Sakura," Yumi suggested politely. Sakura did not protest and seated herself after hesitating for a bit.

"I understand that you are confused. But…have you ever wondered why Sasuke and the other few Purebloods are fighting against their own kind?"

* * *

Tenten let her gaze wander as she sat in the waiting room of Dr. Tsunade Senju's office. After searching directories and talking to people who were aware of the supernatural communities in this world, she found that very few hunter organizations existed. And all fingers pointed that the best was the Dark Coven. Sasuke had been right – she needed to be a registered vampire hunter if she wanted to survive.

Not long after, the door clicked open, revealing a tall, busty blonde whose hair was in a pair of low, long pigtails.

"You must be Tenten, am I correct?" Tsunade said as she entered, then walked over to her desk and sat opposite the female vampire.

"Yes Ma'am…"

"Please, call me 'Tsunade'."

The blonde woman pulled out a few files from her cabinet in her desk and flipped through them. They seemed to be patient files. But then, when Tenten looked more closely, she saw familiar names – Uchiha Sasuke, Uchiha Itachi, Yamanaka Ino…

She realized that those were not patient records. No, they were DC hunter files.

Tsunade handed her a form.

"What's this?" Tenten asked before she could scan the document.

"It's an Information Form. All the information that paper requests of you is obligatory. Leave anything out at will and your request to join this organization will be permanently rejected," Tsunade explained.

The Information Form asked for things like her name; species; age; skills etc. When she was finished, Tenten handed over the form to Tsunade, who placed it into the file which contained the rest of the hunters' info.

Then she spoke to Tenten again.

"Now…let's discuss your…clan…"

"I know nearly nothing about my clan for they no longer exist," Tenten began and as she spoke, Tsunade made some notes on a clipboard, "I've only heard from people in my village eons ago that they were vampires with the special ability of manipulating the element, water. However, as the clan became extinct, the power to control water lessened by each generation…"

"Does that mean you have no power related to your ancestors?" Tsunade questioned.

"Not like theirs…but I can locate people and things through water," Tenten responded. Tsunade scribbled, taking note of her skill.

"But the person or object I wish to find must be near water, though," Tenten added.

"I see," Tsunade muttered, "What about your other abilities? Are you an attacker or defender?"

"With my speed and exceptional sight, I work very well with weapons. And I consider myself an attacker," she answered.

Tsunade loved what she was hearing from the female vampire. Her ability of locating things via water was unlike any other skill she encountered from a vampire. She looked down at her clipboard and re-read her notes, deciding. The Dark Coven already had a little over fifty members and Tsunade had already decided that sixty would be the maximum. She did not want the government to become aware of the organization as she did not know how it would affect the economy and society if werewolves, vampires and every other supernatural being in between became known to the humans.

A knock at her door broke Tsunade out of her thoughts.

"Come in," she ordered.

The person obeyed, closing the door behind him.

"I didn't expect you to be back so soon, Kakashi," Tsunade said to the man. If Tenten had not grunted impatiently, Tsunade would have completely forgotten that the girl was there.

"Oh…I'm sorry, Tenten. I would love to see your artillery skills with my very own eyes. However, I'll arrange another date for the event; there are some other matters I need to tend to right now. I'm very impressed with your ability, so I'll tell you this – I would definitely like to have you on my team. You are dismissed," Tsunade said to the vampire.

With a respectful bow, Tenten turned on her heels and made for the exit, greeting Kakashi on her way.

* * *

Kakashi waited for Tenten to shut the door before beginning…

"Forgive me, Lady Tsunade…I have never questioned your work or your actions and surely, I've never doubted your strategies, however it seems that today you dispatched my team to the wrong area…"

Tsunade glared at Kakashi and then said, "Why do you say so? What was the problem in Costin Town?"

"We went to the area with hopes of finding a large supernatural community; however, there was nothing; no one. The town was completely empty and it looked as though it had been that way for years…"

Tsunade blew out a sigh of frustration. Had it been that the information she had received was incorrect? Or was it that her source was trying to deceive her? Seeing as it was the first time a situation such as this occurred, Tsunade decided that it would be best to convince her that there was nothing strange since it was possible that her sources made a mistake. Though, she could not fight the urge to be sure of it…

"Alright Kakashi," she said, handing her agent a blank sheet of paper and a pen, "I want you to give me a detailed report on what you saw and felt. Be as descriptive as possible. After that, you may leave. Oh and Kakashi –"

Tsunade was about to tell Kakashi about how Sasuke took Sakura to the asylum without her permission, however the sudden beeping of pager changed her mind. "Never mind…I'm needed in the ER," Tsunade informed as she scurried out of her office.

* * *

After giving Yumi's question some thought, Sakura nodded in response. Yes, she had found it rather strange that Sasuke and his brother were fighting against their own race, but she never saw the importance of knowing why since she was too caught up in hating their kind.

"Okay…that's a start. Now I want you to listen to this verse that I wrote when the prophecy became known to me, and see what you can understand from it," Yumi said to Sakura.

"_Like a phoenix, she will rise,  
From the ashes of the fire.  
With crimson hate and a strong desire,  
She will avenge the betrayed empire.  
And with her blood and the power of Kusanagi,  
She will defeat the undead army – the duty of the Prophetic Child…"_

"It's simple poetry…and quite easy to understand…however, it's hard to relate it to myself," Sakura explained.

"That is very understandable, Sakura. You see, my intention really was to merely awaken the questions from deep within you," Yumi replied and Sakura could hear the smile on her face as she spoke.

"I can tell that the first two lines of the verse mean 'reincarnation'. What does that have to do with me?" Sakura began to question.

"Surely, you have encountered the name called 'Azami', am I correct?" Yumi began and when Sakura nodded, she continued, "You see, you are somewhat the reincarnation of that woman, Sakura. There's no doubt about that…especially not when you look _exactly_ like her."

"I believe that you are mistaken. I'm probably just someone who looks like her. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go," Sakura denied and left the room immediately, leaving Sasuke alone with the Oracle. He did not go after the stubborn human since he knew that it would be pointless.

"She'll be back…when she's ready, young Uchiha," Yumi said to him, "As I told you before, I don't feel as if she's ready to know who she really is or what her purpose on this earth is. However I don't think her visit today was pointless. As we speak, the child is in a state of denial – which is a good sign. It simply shows that a part of her has accepted the prophecy and she's now in shock…"

"Sasuke, there seems to be something bothering you. Is there something you wish to ask me?"

Sasuke looked at the woman, wearing a confused frown on his face. "You said '_and with her blood and the power of Kusanagi, she will defeat the undead army_..' – that's probably a mistake," Sasuke replied in confusion, "Kusanagi is my sword – the sword that _chooses_ its wielder. Sakura cannot use it unless I die –"

"I will not give you a vivid explanation since I fear that it would obliterate the prophecy," Yumi interposed, "however, I'll tell you this – the events will take place as they are meant to happen; all _you_ need to do is trust your instincts and the prophecy will be fulfilled. And remember, in this case, you cannot change what is destined to be…"

* * *

When Sakura exited the asylum, she contacted Kakashi immediately. It did not take long for him to arrive at the place and as soon as she got into the car, he bombarded her with questions…

"Sakura, what on earth are you doing here?"

"Honestly, I don't know what possessed me to trust that stupid _vampire_!" she spat.

"Who? Sasuke brought you here?"

Sakura nodded.

"But Tsunade didn't mention anything –"

"Okay, I'm going to get straight to the point. It's either those people are fuckin' _insane_ or you're hiding something from me, Kakashi," Sakura interrupted, angrily.

Kakashi gripped the staring wheel tighter at the sound of the swearing. Sakura hardly used such terms and whenever she did, it meant that she was extremely frustrated.

"I apologize, Sakura, but I was only following orders –"

"You knew that the Dark Coven wanted to use me all along, didn't you?"

"No…not until I met Itachi Uchiha years after I took you into my care," Kakashi answered, honestly.

"I want you to tell me everything…starting with the reason the Uchihas and other Purebloods are fighting against their race, and I want _every_ single detail," Sakura demanded.

Kakashi sighed. It seemed that he had to do a lot of explaining today.

"Alright," he began, "Billions of years ago, back when the supernatural population was vast – yet hidden from most humans – vampires and werewolves were enemies. The leaders of the vampire race were the Purebloods and the leaders of the werewolves were the fifteen clan leaders. The leaders had no knowledge of the plot of treason that was being made by the low-leveled vampires – they planned to overthrow the Purebloods at the opportune moment and conquer the earth; to exterminate the werewolves themselves and make humans their slaves. And that moment happened to be on the day of the great battle between werewolves and vampires. Instead of charging toward the werewolves, the A-ranked vampires attacked most of the Purebloods of their kin. My father, Sakumo Hatake – leader of the Hatake Clan – noticed what was happening and convinced the werewolves to aid the Pureblooded Vampires. Many Purebloods were lost in that war including my father and Fugaku Uchiha – Sasuke's father. That battle of treachery was led by a Pureblood who still lives to this day. His name is Madara Uchiha. Due to his power and being the oldest Uchiha, he isn't easy to slay…and that's where the Prophecy comes into play…"

Kakashi paused for a moment before concluding.

"Since that, the Purebloods marked the low class vampires for their betrayal and agreed to living in peace with the werewolves…"

Sakura said nothing as she tried to process everything she was hearing. There was no conversation until she and Kakashi arrived home and it appeared that Sakura was trying to avoid one as much as possible since she ignored Kakashi's small talk and questions about trivial matters.

Sakura felt the need to be away for some time. She needed to clear her head. Everything had been happening too quickly and somehow she felt as if she did not know herself as well as she thought. Though, she could not deny that what she had learned earlier was intriguing.

She decided that it would be best to stay at home tomorrow since her desire for temporary isolation was great at the moment. She needed to be in a world where races such as vampires and werewolves did not exist…even if it were just for a moment.

Turning off the lights, Sakura got under the covers and tried to make sleep possible.

* * *

She bent over the pail, feeling the contents travel up her throat and in a flash, the liquefied form of her breakfast was in the bucket.

'_I shall never get used to this morning sickness…' _She thought as she threw up more of her breakfast. Whenever she did, she had to do it discreetly – she did not feel ready to tell her parents about her unexpected pregnancy. It was not the pregnancy that she feared, but the questions she knew would come after; especially those about the father her unborn child. As if on cue, said man appeared out of the shadows in silence and she only noticed his presence when he rubbed her back.

Startled, she jumped at his touch.

"Don't sneak up on me like that, Itachi!" she said and nudged him playfully earning a low chuckle from him in the process.

"How have you been?" he asked and added, "You look rather pale. Let's go for a stroll in the sunlight and we can talk a bit."

"Sure…but right after I clean up," she replied with a smile.

They walked along a path in the forest for some time until she became tired. They often took walks here because it was the only place she felt she could be free with her lover, without the worry of interruption or the cruelty of the world.

"Azami," Itachi began, "have you been eating well?"

The question made her frown. She looked at him. "Yes," she replied, "Why? Do I look fat?"

"No, it's quite the opposite, actually…you look frail," Itachi explained.

"Well...I guess that's expected..." she replied, placing her hand over her stomach. "Which reminds me…Itachi, there's something I would like to show you. Do you have a knife on you?"

The man nodded and handed her a knife from his pocket. But the moment he did so, he regretted it greatly. "Azami, what are you doing?"

But it was too late – she had already slit her hand. The cut was deep enough for blood to emerge from the broken skin. It did not take long for the burning sensation to take effect. She noticed Itachi's eyes turning crimson, as the blood made him high. Her scent was always appealing to him; however she knew he had enough control over himself.

"Look at this," she said after giving back the knife. Then, she placed her right palm over the wound on her left hand, only to let it hover; no physical contact. She left it there until a green, glowing light visibly emitted from her palm, and soon engulfed it. It felt like a vibrant force was being released from her right hand; one that needed a lot of concentration to keep it at a small level.

"Look at my wound," she pointed out to Itachi. In a short time, the injury had completely healed. Itachi stared in his form of awe since he rarely expressed emotions.

"Where did you learn that, Azami?" he asked, taking her hand to examine the place where the cut was.

"I don't know…it just …happened…"

Suddenly, there was a stabbing pain to her stomach. She winced and instinctively put her hand on the area. She felt her legs going numb…

* * *

When Sakura woke up, she found herself nearly close to tears and her hand was on her stomach, only to find that she was in her room, sweating profusely, and in absolutely no pain. She took several gasps to pull herself together.

'_That woman again…' _Sakura thought in annoyance, referring to Azami. _'And why was Itachi there? Or the better question is – why am I dreaming of him…with me? Am I really the reincarnation of Azami?' _

She realized that the nightmares were becoming frequent, much to her dislike. Again, in the dream, she felt as if she was Azami and that she had been experience whatever happened.

Sakura place her head in her palms and let out a frustrated growl. "This is going to drive me fucking insane!"

She sighed. Curiosity never got the better of her, but it was safe to say that because of how irritating the dreams were, Sakura knew that she would be going back to the asylum. Or at least, she should before it ended up becoming her home instead…

* * *

The next morning, Sasuke was the first to notice Sakura's absence, especially since her scent seemed to be the most dominant one in the atmosphere ever since her arrival. He figured that she would be a 'no-show' today considering her reaction to her confrontation with the Oracle yesterday.

He walked up the stairs of the High School – where he most certainly did not belong – ignoring the shout-outs from the annoying sixteen year old girls.

"Good morning, Sasuke. You look annoyed," Sasuke heard a familiar voice behind him say. He did not reply, but instead smirked. His brother knew him all too well.

"Though, I think it's time enough you found a mate and settled down," Itachi suggested to his younger brother.

"I could say the same for you," Sasuke said, taking the risk. He knew his brother still felt for Azami and she was hardly ever a topic they discussed since they tried their best to avoid the remembrance of their past life and the people they lost. But Sasuke knew that for Itachi, that became impossible ever since Sakura arrived in Seattle and he hated to admit that he felt pity for him. Sasuke learnt from his brother's mistake – emotions such as love were strong enough to make the most powerful beings weak.

Then, breaking the awkward moment, Sasuke's phone rang…

"_Is this Sasuke Uchiha?" _he heard a familiar voice ask on the other line.

"Who is this?" he replied with a question.

"_Sakura. I need you to take me to see Yumi Komagata…"_

Sasuke found out the directions to her house and then disconnected the call…

* * *

When they reached their destination, Sakura did not wait for anyone to escort her to Yumi's room. On remembering where she was taken from the day before, Sakura was able to calculate the location of the room and found herself there before Sasuke.

Yumi greeted her as she entered the room. Sakura could not help but notice something odd about the Oracle's voice. Strangely, it seemed…older…

"I knew you'd return, however you did so sooner than I had anticipated," Yumi said to Sakura who was now sitting opposite the woman.

Of course Yumi was expecting her, she thought; after all, the woman could see the future. But something bothered Sakura deeply…

"You sound different, Ms. Komagata…" Sakura said, hoping that it was enough to insinuate that she wanted an explanation.

"As I said before, I cannot die a natural death until I reveal the Prophecy to you, dear Sakura; and so far I've told you piece of it, and so I've aged a bit, reminding me that my death is near," Yumi enlightened, most politely. Sakura had to admit, the new tone suited her – the way she talked as if she lived in medieval times.

They began with Sakura's explanation for returning. She explained the dream she had and inquired about Azami and Itachi.

"Lovely…I believe this will be a wonderful way to start," Yumi commented, "You ask about Azami and Itachi…well, let me _show you…"_

Just then the door opened and was shut with a soft 'click'; and from the footsteps, Sakura knew that Sasuke had just entered the room. But, as quick as her realization surfaced, it was dismissed as she continued to focus on the more fundamental matter.

Sakura was asked to move a little closer to Yumi, who had been sitting opposite her. Then she felt the woman's cold hands, one on each side of her head, causing Sakura to shiver slightly.

On feeling Sakura's body tense, Yumi said in a low voice, "Just relax, Sakura…and close your eyes."

And when Sakura complied, Yumi whispered, "Very good…now I want you to shut off everything that's bothering you; let your guard down – you're safe here, so there's nothing to worry about…just keep your mind clear, but open…"

And then, without any warning, an electrifying pain shot through Sakura's head and travelled throughout her entire body, making her become so numb that writhing was even impossible. Her screams bounced off the walls of the confinement. She tried to move her hands to stop Yumi who seemed to be inflicting the pain, but they did not budge. There was a 'ringing' sound as though someone was trying to drill a hole through her skull.

"STOP!" She managed to scream when she retrieved the ability to form words, but Yumi seemed to ignore her plea.

Strange images began to form in her mind, like she could actually _see _people. It was almost like one of her dreams with the exception that she was an _onlooker_…

_The woman wearing the traditional Junihitoe which consisted of layers upon layers of silken cloth rose from her seat as the shoji door slid open. She beamed at the young man that entered the room, her black eyes looking welcoming. "Itachi, you've arrived. Welcome home, my son," Mikoto Uchiha greeted warmly. Her pale skin was notably contrasted to the dark colors of her attire as she moved toward the tall figure standing in the doorway. _

_His face was expressionless as he let his mother embrace him. He spoke before she could invite him in. _

"_There is someone I would like you to meet."_

_Mikoto blinked twice, curiosity evident on her beautifully pale face; but she said nothing as she patiently waited for her son to call in their guest._

_A moment later Itachi returned, followed by a young woman with unusual light-pink hair that flowed in straight waves down to the middle of her back. She had mesmerizing jade eyes that went well with her light skin and hair – such odd physical features for a normal human girl: she had picked up the scent since the girl had entered. _

_Mikoto turned to her son. "Who is this gorgeous young lady, Itachi?" _

"_Her name is Azami and she is the mother of my unborn child," Itachi responded. _

_Mikoto was silent for a moment, but after taking a quick glance at Azami, she turned to her son and said, "But Itachi…she's merely a human girl –"_

"_Mikoto, I would like to have a look at this woman," said a voice. Then emerging from behind the Uchiha Matriarch was a tall woman who possessed a celestial face. Her voice was soft but held a tone of superiority. She walked past Mikoto and toward the pregnant woman. _

"_I've seen you before," Yumi Komagata said as she looked into Azami's sea of jade and gained a questioning look from her. _

_Yumi placed her left hand above Azami's stomach and closed her eyes, but in a flash they reopened in terror, accompanied by a gasp. _

"_Your daughter will be very powerful, Itachi," Yumi said, turning to face the soon-to-be father. However, the glint of sadness in her eyes did not go unnoticed by the heir to the Uchiha Empire. "Though even if fate isn't kind to her she will still play a very important role in the Prophecy," she continued, now speaking to both Itachi and Azami, "Your daughter will activate the rage – the foremost sentiment that would instigate the stimulation of the birth of the first chapter of the Prophecy."_

"_Bounded to the pyre,  
By those of her own flesh and blood,  
She will be devoured by a furious flame – a death perceived by the Traitor.  
Then birthed will be the raged soul,  
With a longing to silence her child's true slayer…"_

_Itachi merely glared at the Night Witch, his crimson Sharingan eyes slowly masking his onyx ones. "What is this Prophecy you speak of?" he asked, still angered by the prediction he heard. _

_Yumi said nothing; she simply looked at him as if she was amused by his question. Then, giving a small smile, she said, "When the time is right, Master Uchiha, you'll know. But for now, let's see which path destiny decides to take…"_

The pain stopped abruptly and the scene grayed into darkness. Sakura panted heavily in attempt to recover her senses. She could not speak for her voice was course from the continuous screaming. And when should finally think straight, she tried to remember what she had just 'seen'.

"Don't get too relieved yet Sakura," Yumi spoke, her hands still on Sakura's head. "I've more to show you…"

And once again, the pain returned along with another vision…

* * *

Sasuke could only listen as the girl screamed her lungs out. For once her cursed his enhanced hearing ability, but fortunately the shrilly cries could do him no permanent damage.

"P-Please! STOP!" Sakura screamed out again.

Sasuke knew that this was to be expected, but there was something that made him feel the need to stop Yumi. For some reason, he could not bear to listen to Sakura's helpless pleas. Was he devastated by it?

He grunted. "Annoying…" he muttered to himself with the slight intention of convincing himself that the sound was indeed irritating. He merely turned away, and just as he did, he heard Sakura 'gag' and the screaming ceased. Sasuke turned to face Yumi and Sakura once again.

"We're finished," Yumi informed…

* * *

Yumi handed Sakura a glass of water, then returned to her seat. She watched as the girl sipped her water and breathed slowly. When she seemed to rekindle herself, Sakura spoke.

"Yesterday you told me that I'm _somewhat_ the reincarnation of that woman…I don't understand –"

"If you were the complete reincarnation of Azami, you'd possess her personal qualities; however you're quite the opposite character. Azami was more warm and soft-spoken and very kind; you on the other hand, have a gruffer, tough and demanding personality. And there is one more thing…" Yumi said before pausing for a moment, "You don't seem to be attracted to Itachi Uchiha…"

That last statement surprised Sakura a bit, until she reminded herself that Azami and Itachi were possibly married in the past. "Then, what is your theory about this 'reincarnation'?" Sakura asked the woman. It appeared that this Prophecy was not as simple as Sakura thought. Still, she could not understand how Kakashi could have kept something as important as this, from her for so long? Was it because he truly did not want her to get involved, even if it meant that there would be no revolution? The fact that he kept her in the dark for so long made her wonder about the other things he was not telling her.

"I have two theories, actually," Yumi said as-a-matter-of-factly, "My first is that your body contains two souls – one you call Sakura and the other that belongs to Azami. That would explain your different personalities. The other theory is that your souls are split to form one. Either way would explain your differences in many things."

Sakura merely "'hm'ed'" at this, understanding that in due time, she would figure out which one of Yumi's theories were valid. But not wasting any more time on pondering, she decided what she would ask next.

"What is Kusanagi?" – was Sakura's next question.

"That is the name given to the sword Sasuke uses to slay vampires," Yumi replied, "Kusanagi is a Japanese blade that chooses its owner – in this case that person happens to be Sasuke – and no one else can touch it since it repels whoever does. Sasuke is a Lightening user, and therefore if a person touches it willfully or not, he or she will be electrocuted."

"Then why does the Prophecy state that I will avenge the Purebloods with it?"

"I'm afraid I do not have the answer to that. I believe that you must decipher that one on your own. Or perhaps, the sword has an exception?" Yumi suggested. "I think that pretty much covers everything. But I must warn you – Madara Uchiha is very strong and possesses power beyond your imagination, therefore it would be wise to always be alert and never wander without company. I wish to know if I have made myself clear, Sakura Haruno."

"Yes."

Yumi watched Sakura's back as she left her room, taking note of her confident stride, even after all the physical pain she underwent.

'_The storm is coming, Uchiha Madara...and it's raging with so much hate and power that I'm most certain it'll put an end to your desperate dreams and aspirations…"_

* * *

Sasuke slammed the door shut on his way out of Tsunade's office. He had explained several times before to the woman that it would be unwise to pair him with Sakura for _any_ mission, but it was almost as if Tsunade tuned off every time he did. No matter, he merely considered it an opportunity to strengthen his weakness – he intended to become immune to the tempting and addictive sent of her blood which annoyed him to a level that was out of this world.

The mission did not directly require any form of violent activity unless a threat was encountered. He and Sakura had to simply monitor the area Kakashi was sent to without being noticed, and report any signs of inhabitance. Sasuke did not have a problem with that. However, he hated the fact that they were required to stay at their appointed location for an entire _week_!

Currently Sakura had been staying at DC's apartments since she apparently had a dispute with Kakashi. When he arrived at the residence, he notified Sakura about the mission.

"Pack your things," he instructed lastly, "Our destination is about two hours from here." And then, he retired to his room.

He needed to pack blood…lots of it…

* * *

**And that concludes this chapter! **

**Q: Did you stop writing this story?  
A: Nope. I've just been really busy and I apologize for not making frequent updates.**

**Q: Is Sakura going to be blind for the rest of the story?  
A: That's a good one. Basically, I have the story planned out already, including the conclusion, but I can't give a definite answer to that question. The most concrete answers I can give are 'maybe' and 'probably not'? I'm still not sure **

**NEXT UPDATE: JUNE 7****th**** 2011**

**40 + 10 = 50 reviews (are expected. I really appreciate feedback)**

**AND THANKS TO ALL MY REVIEWERS! I hope you liked this chapter…oh and please excuse the mistakes you may have encountered…I didn't get a chance to re-read properly…**

**-Iz.**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: 'Inner Sakura'**

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Six: An Underworld **

Sakura knew Sasuke would do no such thing as taking the initiative of helping her get familiar to her new surroundings, so she helped herself by pacing around slowly enough to locate where certain objects were so that later she would not have the fear of bumping into anything like a clumsy child. It appeared that they were in a small house. The atmosphere was not claustrophobic but merely filled with a calmness that provided a much wanted comfort. The quietness was beneficial to her in that she was not required to strain her senses in order to move around independently.

Sakura moved toward the direction where she felt the absence of obstructions, thinking it to be a doorway.

It seemed to Sakura that she entered a room as she got the feeling of the confinement the walls of the small room provided. She was able to judge her distances from furniture and the walls since most objects emitted a heat radiation. If rather close to an object, the radiation will be great as opposed to if she was more distanced.

She felt a strong radiation of heat at her legs and bent over a little so that her hand brushed over the soft surface of the furniture and smiled on realizing that she had discovered the bedroom.

"It's the only furnished bedroom in the entire house," she heard Sasuke say from behind.

"_We're sharing_ a room?" Sakura asked, ready to protest against the implication.

"No. This is your room," he replied bluntly.

"So where are you staying if _this_ is the only furnished room?" Sakura asked. Honestly, she did not mean to pry, however the words seemed to have slipped past her lips before she could stop herself.

"Hn…you despise and execute my race without knowing anything about us at all," Sasuke answered and Sakura could tell that his back was facing her from the way his voice sounded slightly muffled. "Vampires rarely sleep at all."

"For a moment there I'd say you disapproved of slaying your kind," Sakura shot, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Then forgive me if it sounded that way. However to think that you'd believe that I would not see the justice in exterminating the fools who murdered my clan, makes me question your intelligence," Sasuke responded coldly, "Be prepared investigate the town tonight."

And he left, shutting the door on his way out.

Sakura felt a heat build up within her stomach and then in a swift wave, it travelled to her head and branch out to different parts of her body, especially her fists. She clenched them tightly and shut her eyes in attempted to make her anger ebb away.

'_Keep your cool, Sakura…for the sake of the organization,' _she thought to herself.

Sakura thumped her knees against the edge of the bed to ensure that it was safe to slump down onto the mattress's soft surface carelessly.

'_It's going to be a long week,' _she said inwardly, leaning back onto the pillows. Her anger had subsided enough for her to bring herself to understand that it was pointless to argue with Sasuke Uchiha.

"…_you despise and execute my race without knowing anything about us at all..." _ His words echoed in her memory.

She knew what she was required to know about her enemies – the various ways to slay them – and had no interest in learning anything more. Or at least, she tried to convince herself that she did not want to.

'_Tch…this mission is already driving me insane…' _

'_**Thinking about the lifestyle of vampires is not a sign of insanity,' **_a voice said and instantly, Sakura's body shot up from her lying position on the bed.

"Who's there?" she asked with much firmness.

'_**You don't need to be alarmed…and there's no need for you to speak to me out loud. Just say what you have to say in your mind,' **_the woman responded. Strangely to Sakura, the person spoke in a voice that sounded exactly like hers, only gentler.

Sakura replied in the way the woman suggested, though still very confused.

'_You still didn't answer my question.'_

'_**My apologies, Sakura; I've been waiting a long time for the right opportunity to introduce my existence to you and my instincts tell me that this is the moment. I know this may be hard to believe, but I'm Azami…'**_

'_Azami?' _Sakura spoke mentally to the woman, _'If I could communicate with you like this, then that means your soul is separate from mine…' _

'_**That is very correct,' **_Azami said, her voice sounding faint now. _**'I know you have many questions for me, Sakura, however it takes a lot of energy for me to communicate with you like this since my soul is not the dominant one over yours…' **_Azami explained. Her tone was now barely audible, but Sakura was able to distinguish what Azami said down to the last whisper.

The new discovery evoked an overwhelming feeling of excitement in Sakura. She wanted to know more – was there anything else she was capable of without her knowledge? She wished that Azami would surface once again. Conversing with Azami felt odd at first, but gradually – in that short time she communed with Azami – she became comfortable with the woman…

* * *

The night felt cold despite wearing a vest and over that, a shirt which was hidden under her parka jacket. She and Sasuke sauntered the quiet streets with an ample amount of awareness to detect anything strange in the small town. However, the chilly atmosphere seemed to have taken a toll on her senses a little. Sakura was, after all a human.

In a quick glance Sasuke caught Sakura's slight shiver. But the fact that she was feeling cold was not what concerned him; it was the look she wore on her face – the way her sightless eyes seemed to be staring into space, as if trying to make sense out of something; the way her eye brows were knitted as if she was frustrated with whatever it was she could not understand. And then he heard her sigh.

"Stop," Sasuke ordered.

The sudden sound of the masculine voice made Sakura snap out of her sea of thoughts, making her obey the command in the process.

"Focus on the mission, Sakura," Sasuke said to her in a monotone voice.

"I am focusing on the mission, _Uchiha!" _Sakura spat firmly, in attempt to hide the fact that she had been lying.

"If you were concentrating on the mission I'm sure you would be aware that you were heading toward the street lighting pole," Sasuke pointed out, sounding as if he could not care less if the girl had actually walked into the pole.

Sakura's breath hitched on hearing what she was about to do. She had no idea that she had been _that_ absent-minded. Immediately, she temporarily discarded her attempts to will Azami back into her thoughts and paid full attention on the mission at hand.

Sasuke had already begun walking up the street again and she did the same, guided by his footsteps. She shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket in order to decrease the distraction from the coldness in the air and found that the action was indeed effective, considering what she discovered soon after…

* * *

"Master Madara Uchiha, it has been revealed," the hooded figure spoke, his words echoing in the darkness.

Madara slowly turned to overlook the vast yard of gravestones through the Victorian-designed window, his eyes crimson like a sea of blood, piercing through the darkness outside. And then he smirked, silently expressing sheer gratitude – everything was finally beginning; he smirked, portraying a brilliant confidence – soon everything would fall into place.

"Hn…tell me Pein, what is the child's name," Madara spoke finally, not taking his eyes off the graveyard.

"Sakura Haruno, my Lord," the man called 'Pein' responded.

Before the birth of Sakura Haruno, Madara Uchiha could not be defeated by anyone. He knew that it would be impossible to stop her from becoming existent, so he waited for her birth and continued to wait for some form of her identity to be revealed.

"Pein I want you to find her whereabouts and when you do, I want you to obliterate the obstacle that stands in my way…"

* * *

"What's the matter?" Sasuke asked Sakura, on noticing she had ceased walking. Then she did something very strange that made his eyes widen a fraction – Sakura took off her shoes.

Once Sakura's bare feet touched the rough ground, she felt the faint vibrations that matched the sound of the soft humming which she had heard earlier. Could it all be in her head? Doubtful to some extent, she got onto her knees and pressed her palms to the concrete.

'_**They're underground!' **_Sakura heard a familiar voice, sounding far away, bringing her to a realization.

"What are you _doing_?" Sasuke asked, sounding very annoyed, but Sakura paid no attention to that.

"Sasuke…they're _underground_…" Sakura managed to mutter, still trying to recover from the disbelief. It was also hard to believe that Sasuke – a being whose senses were supposed to be far more advanced than any human – did not detect anything at all.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke enquired, his emotionless tone masking his confusion.

"Can't you feel it? The vibrations underneath us – something's moving down there," Sakura explained as she tried to get back onto her feet; and somehow she found it difficult to do so.

When she did however manage to accomplish that, she stumbled forward at her first attempt to walk and expected to fall flat down on her face, when she was suddenly braced by a pair of arms. She could feel Sasuke's cold body temperature even through the fabric of his clothing.

"T-Thank you…" she mumbled and moved away slowly, feeling embarrassed by her clumsiness. Was it clumsiness? She wondered.

As soon as she was free of Sasuke's hold, her legs became weak but before she her stance could falter, Sakura felt around for another means of support and braced her body by grabbing onto a nearby light pole. She was unexplainably drained; so exhausted that she allowed herself to gently fall to the floor, her back pressed against the pole.

She could feel Sasuke's gaze upon her and though she could not see his face or even though he had not said anything, she knew he was confused by her actions.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "but I just need a few moments to catch my breath."

"It's surprising that you became so tired from just a little bit of walking," Sasuke spoke, moving towards the young woman on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked in shock when she felt herself being lifted off the paved sidewalk and found herself in his arms once again.

"Hn… seeing your state, I believe you'll take at least a couple of hours to recover your strength, and I don't want to wait here," Sasuke replied before making a leap.

At first, it was a frightful sensation – the feeling of being in the air – but it soon died down with the wind caressing her bare skin and she felt comfortable in the strong arms which held her gently in bridal style; comfortable enough to allow herself to drift away into the haziness of sleep.

And for once, she was convinced that Sasuke was human…just this once…

* * *

Sakura woke to the sound of muffled shuffling. With her eyes still closed, she noted the soothing softness caressing her body and slowly the misty feeling of sleepiness cleared up, bringing her back to reality. Was she at the house she and Sasuke were to stay at during the course of the mission? And how long had she been asleep?

Knowing that she would not get answers by remaining on the bed, Sakura got off, and searched for her coat with her hands. When she did, she threw it over her shoulder and focused on finding the door; and on realizing that it was a bit difficult to do so, Sakura became aware that she was not at the lodge which she had familiarized herself with earlier.

On exiting the room, Sakura found herself in an open area where rays of sun kissed her bare skin and judging from the cool atmosphere, she assumed that it was some time in the morning.

"Oh…Good morning!" Sakura heard a soft, feminine voice call out to her and turned to the direction from which it came.

"Are you Miss Sakura Haruno?" the woman asked and Sakura nodded in response.

"Wow…you look even more stunning from up close. Oh…before I completely go off topic – your boyfriend said to let you know that he just stepped out to get breakfast," the woman informed with a chuckle.

'_Breakfast? BOYFRIEND?' _

"I'm sorry, but you're mistaken. Sasuke isn't my boyfriend," Sakura corrected, adding a smile to prevent her from seeming harsh.

"Oh forgive me…but the way he carried you in his arms was so…" the woman mused and sighed at the end of her incomplete sentence.

Sakura gave a low grunt. _'Who does he think he is, going around giving people the wrong impression…?'_

After a polite conversation, Sakura learned that she was at a motel called Sato Inn in a small town near Costin Town. It was understandable why Sasuke had brought her here. Their lodge had been situated approximately two hours from Costin Town, so it was sensible to spend the night in the closest area that had civilization, considering that Sakura was a human with human necessities such as food.

Sakura had also found out that the local police had done an investigation regarding the disappearance of citizens of the town; however, they could not explain the occurrence. But Sakura remembered what she had discovered the last night, and this time she felt surer that somehow, there was a community underground.

She returned to her motel room to find that Sasuke had returned with breakfast for her. It seemed a very out-of-character thing for Sasuke to do, but it made much sense that his act of 'kindness' was merely for the sake of the mission's success; after all, a human would be almost completely useless if they lacked the strength to stand.

"I need to make a report to Headquarters, so tell me what you found out yesterday; and I want details," Sasuke demanded in his normal tone, when Sakura finished her burger.

Sakura explained what she had felt despite knowing that Sasuke doubted her detections.

Before Sasuke contacted Headquarters, he said to her, "I don't want a repeat of what happened last night…"

Sakura had no intention of telling anyone about Azami, but somehow felt that the matter would arise sooner or later. It was only a matter of time.

* * *

Her brown eyes widened as she witnessed the male vampire's unusual technique. His chakra was very much visible, shielding his body from opponents' attacks, when span continuously, raising the dust from the ground in the process and his two sparring mates were thrown backwards onto the ground. The technique raised many questions in Tenten's mind, but after an entire morning of observing her new colleagues; it became clear to her that the Pureblood before her was a vampire of few words so voicing her questions would be pointless.

Tenten stood up when Neji Hyuuga came to a halt. She doubted he knew she was there, since his back was turned to her for almost the entire time; and if he knew, he did nothing to acknowledge her presence.

Stealthily, she walked onto the training grounds, about two meters away from the spectator section – which were mainly rows of stairs, separated from the field by a long iron bar that ran horizontally along the bottom stair.

Then, quietly she unsheathed three kunai from her weapons belt, and aiming at different angles of his back, she threw them. Not waiting for her kunai to hit her target, Tenten readied two of her large shurikens, and then swung them both in Neji's direction in one swift motion.

As anticipated, he performed the very same technique he had used earlier.

"And here I thought you were just an audience," he said to her when he became still once again. His voice was icy and egoistical, but she did not need to know his voice to distinguish his level of power. He was dangerous…but Tenten took the risk anyway and answered.

"I was," she responded, putting her hands on her waist, "until I became curious…"

"If you don't mind, I would very much love a sparring session with you, Neji Hyuuga."

He did not respond verbally to her request; instead he fixed himself into a Baguazhang fighting stance.

Tenten bit down into her thumb, drawing a small amount of blood which she smeared across an open scroll containing inked inscriptions and summoned a great variety of weapons – various Japanese swords; Japanese spears; Japanese staffs with blades at the top.

"I see…so your specialty is artillery," Neji noted.

"It's my most favorite skill," Tenten answered, before grabbing three spears in each hand and flung them at him so swiftly that he could not follow the movements of her hands.

At first, he simply evaded the attacks, but when Tenten began to throw the weapons that happen been provided by her scroll so fast that he only heard the vibrations her arms created against the wind, Neji's dodges became more complex that it looked like a graceful dance.

Tenten was becoming annoyed with the fact that she had not even scratched him once. She never missed her target.

'_I should just focus on one particular part of his body…' _she thought and then an idea came to her, causing her to smirk mischievously. _'And in order to hit him, I'll have to resort to __**that**__ technique…' _

Tenten reached for a scroll from her weapons belt and removed its seal. It was then thrown up into the air, unraveling in the soft wind and within a few seconds, the long sheet of parchment exploded into clouds of smoke, producing a vast number of kunai and shuriken that were all heading in Neji's direction. Usually she used this technique when her enemies came in numbers that was too many for her to handle. This time, she used it as a diversion and Neji fell for the bait.

Three seconds later another explosion of smoke surrounded another portion of the same scroll – which was still airborne – and more weapons were summoned.

Tenten released a false scroll into the air, with hopes of tricking her sparring partner into thinking that she would continue to unleash more weapons; and while her first batch of weapons were still fulfilling their job. Then, when she was certain that Neji had been preoccupied with avoiding the weapons that were now incessantly coming down on him, she focused her aim on a part of his body that rarely made any movement as he fought – his abdomen.

She back-flipped a few meters away in order to get a good aim at Neji, and then pulled out a kunai which she dangled around in her fingers. When she was satisfied with her target, she swung her right hand forward and released the kunai from her grasp.

The short blade travelled speedily through the wind, heading in the direction Tenten had planned. She was certain that her weapon would hit its target, but with a particular twist of his body, Neji was able to avoid the blow.

Instead, the kunai flew into the tree trunk behind him, the blade deeply embedded into the wooden surface and the match…was over.

Tenten's stare hardened as she looked at the male before him, his stance strong and his bare body without a single scar.

'_Tch…how could I have NOT beaten him?' _Tenten questioned herself in disbelief.

"I must say, artillery must certainly be your forte for keeping me on my toes like that," Neji said to her. His eyes met hers for the first time since the match had begun.

"You're not bad yourself. I never miss my targets…you were the first," she responded, shooting him a very small smile that disappeared the moment it was formed.

Neji walked across the field, over to Tenten. "If I'm not mistaken, you must be the newest addition to the organization…"

"It's Tenten," she introduced herself and offered her hand which he shook firmly.

"Neji Hyuuga…"

Nothing much was said between them after the introductions, however Tenten did not feel awkward around this character. She merely accepted his ways. That was her nature – it was how she survived all these years: by understanding, accepting people and things as they were; avoiding unnecessary conflict; keeping a low profile. Besides, she had no interest in befriending him or anyone in the organization. Friendship was one thing she learned to live without.

The fact that she could not defeat this vampire in battle only reminded her that she had a lot to learn in order to avoid the repetition of a particular event in her past.

'_I guess I'll have to spar some more with him to figure out his secrets…so that I can hone my skills against the Hyuuga… ' _she thought to herself, recalling that near death encounter she once experienced.

* * *

"_Sasuke, there's a __**reason**__ I teamed you up with Sakura. I have my suspicions about this town and I would very much like if you could, for once, trust the girl…" _

Tsunade's words from the phone conversation replayed in his memory once more as he waited for Sakura to finish her bath. He had informed Tsunade about Sakura's claims that there was something beneath the town. He found that incredibly insane as he was unable to detect nothing, and being the high ranked vampire he was, with his abilities, seeing was believing.

It was not long before Sakura emerged from the bathroom to meet him in the bedroom of the small motel room. Her eye brows were knitted together as if she was thinking about something, remaining silent for a few minutes. Then she spoke.

"I want to investigate the subway here."

Sasuke did not need to inquire a reason as to why she wanted to do such a thing since it made sense that if there was activity occurring beneath the town, the subway would be the best place to start; and since the town was presumably abandoned, it would make the investigation very much easier.

"Hn…" he muttered monotonously in agreement.

* * *

As expected, the subway was free of people when they Sasuke and Sakura arrived; and having not been utilized for quite a period of time, Sasuke noted that the place seemed rather dilapidated and dark. He turned to where Sakura was standing and noticed that she had been incredibly still, but he did not disturb her as he knew she was trying to concentrate.

"Can't you feel it? The vibrations are stronger beneath us. And the humming noise, whatever it is, it's even louder than before," Sakura said to him, almost sounding excited.

"No," he replied truthfully. And it bothered him that he was unable to sense anything. How could something of this nature go unnoticed by him?

Sakura turned to the direction of his voice, her eyes coincidentally fixed directed upon his. She wore a confused expression.

"Why?" she asked, "Honestly, I was expecting you to detect this before I did…"

Sasuke said nothing to that and both remained silent for quite some time.

Sakura walked further down the subway's route, finding that the physical sensations beneath her feet became more intense as she did.

"Do you think there's a passageway that can lead us to another level below or something?" Sakura asked, breaking the silence, as she pressed her hand against the painted brick wall.

"Hn…probably…"

After informing him that she would investigate further into the tunnel, Sakura left Sasuke on his own. She was careful with her steps since she was not very familiar with the area. She walked in a straight path and if she wandered off track for investigation purposes, she made sure to remember the coordinates that would take her back to her original course. Preoccupied by this, she failed to perceive the footsteps walking toward her from behind and only recognized the being's presence when it was at close proximity to her.

"Did you find something, Sasuke?" she asked the vampire, but the response she received was not what she had expected.

Something cold and metallic was pressed against the sensitive flesh of her neck; and then she felt a wet tongue glide across her cheek.

The panic started welling up inside her stomach, along with confusion and an immense fear when Sakura realized that she could not reach her weapons for her hands were now being held tightly by an inhumane strength.

"Who are you?" she asked, trying her best to sound scared.

"Relax…I just want to have some…fun," the male purred, his breath tickling the side of her neck.

He was a vampire, she realized, when his teeth grazed her skin slightly.

Sakura closed her eyes to prevent the formation of tears and gulped. Her mind was racing with thoughts of how she could possibly escape from the enemy's grasp and fight back. The sudden appearance of a vampire was the last thing she expected in Costin Town. She knew the male vampire would not kill her immediately; judging by his tone of voice, she was certain that he would take his time to enjoy the luxury of her body while feeding on her blood. What could happen next was what petrified her most – if he wished it, the male vampire was capable of turning her into what she despised the most.

"Touch her and _I will kill you_…" A voice echoed in the abandoned subway.

And for once, Sakura was happy to hear his voice…

* * *

Sasuke's eyes were crimson with a furious Sharingan. The blade of his Kusnagai was pressed against the lowly vampire's back.

"Release her," Sasuke commanded in a tone that silently promised the vampire's death if he did not obey. Sakura's captor seemed to have understood this as he slowly removed the blade from her throat and let go of her arms. But Sasuke still kept his sword at the male vampire's back.

"Sakura, bind his hands and feet with these," Sasuke said to the woman, handing her some coiled silver-plated barbed wire.

Sakura wrapped the wire around the vampire's wrists tightly enough for the spikes to etch into his flesh so that it would cause him pain since vampires were vulnerable to silver. Then she did the same for his feet after removing his shoes.

Sasuke sheathed his sword.

"I have some questions," Sasuke began, "Answer them correctly and I'll let you live."

The vampire on the ground grunted in pain and annoyance.

"Is there an underground society here?" Sasuke asked, beginning the interrogation.

The vampire hesitated, before answering, "Yes…"

"How large is the community?"

"Vast – an army in numbers with power far greater than your own; and too much for you and your other pathetic slayers to handle," the male spat.

Sasuke ignored the vampire's comment, and asked the other question.

"Is Madara Uchiha there?"

The vampire ruptured into a fit of sadistic laughter. "Lord Madara...does not disclose his whereabouts to those whose power does not equal his, except his henchmen…"

Just then, the vampire who was supposed to be bounded sprung from the ground and towards Sasuke, taking him by surprise.

Sasuke ignored the sharp burning sensation in his stomach and pushed the weaker vampire away from him with great force. Then, he wasted no time in drawing his sword.

"Why? Why aren't you dead yet?" the vampire asked in confusion.

"Because like the fool that you are," Sasuke said, walking toward the being that had been backing away, "you failed to realize that I'm a Pureblood Vampire…and a descendant of Madara Uchiha…"

And with that said, Sasuke allowed his sword to lengthen into the vampire's chest and with swift action, made a clean cut upwards, halving his heart and skull. Sakura was lucky she could not see the messy death, Sasuke thought as the body fell lifelessly onto the floor.

Now that the struggle was over, Sasuke's attention was drawn to the pain in his abdomen and realized that he had been stabbed…with a silver knife. Trying his hardest not to groan in agony, he pulled out the object that would be considered deadly to a lower class vampire and threw it aside.

The loss of blood caused his vision to haze and he lost his composure, causing him to stubble to his knees.

"Sasuke? Are you alright?" he heard Sakura ask as she tried to make her way to him.

"I'm here," he notified her, "and I'm fine."

Sakura had a hard time believing that on hearing the strain in his voice. She found him on the ground, his breathing rapid. Carefully, she swung one of his arms over her shoulders and wrapped her free arm around his waist, getting a feel of the wet substance in the process.

"You're bleeding…" she realized. "What were you stabbed with?"

"Sliver knife…" Sasuke said through gritted teeth.

Sakura knew that it would take more than one silver knife to bring down a Pureblood Vampire; had it been and A-Ranked Vampire, his soul would have immediately left his body due to an extreme amount of blood loss and slow, incurable disintegration of his physical being.

* * *

Sakura managed to get them both back to their motel apartment unseen by unwanted eyes. Neither of them spoke to each other on the way and when they entered their inn, Sasuke did not hesitate in increasing the distance between them.

She despised herself for being so helpless in the situation she was faced with; part of her even blamed herself for Sasuke's injury though it was nothing fatal. It caused her to feel obligated to him – the one, who saved her life; the one who saved her from losing her identity…

She heard him squeeze another empty packet of blood so as to consume every last drop of the substance. She heard the refrigerator's door open again as he grabbed another blood bag.

Then, the most absurd idea came to her head, and she voiced it before even considering it.

"Take my blood instead…"

She waited for his answer; she knew the blood that Tsunade had provided for him from the hospital was not taking effect quickly enough.

"No," he answered dully and went for another bag.

"At this rate, you won't have anything to sustain you for the rest of the week," she said persistently, "Besides I still have to repay you for what you did today…"

"I said no. Annoying…"

"Why not? You're being unreasonable –"

"Because the desire to _fuck_ you is overwhelming!" he snapped before storming outside, leaving Sakura confused and shocked at his statement…

* * *

Sasuke gripped the empty bag tightly in his fisted hands as they held his head in frustration. The anger within him was still infuriating, making his cold blood boil to the highest degree. When he felt Sakura's chakra signature become erratic, he did something that he never did in centuries – he panicked. Why? He could not understand why, but when the felt the unfamiliar chakra signature that was causing Sakura's to be distressed, he instantaneously became besieged with an enormous rage.

Sakura was not doing anything to make matters better by offering her blood to him. Did she understand exactly what she was asking for? It seemed clear to him that she was either blinded by the guilt of being helpless or she was completely oblivious to the consequences that would follow if he accepted her offer. Still, he was surprised at his choice of words he used earlier in the room.

But as complicated as it was to understand, what he said…was the mere truth…

* * *

**A/N: So how was **_**that**_**? I'm sorry this took so long, but it's really hard to stare at a monitor when your eyes are all watery and your nose won't stop running. Yes, I had the flu. But now I'm all better. I made a speedy recovery, as a matter of fact. **

**I do believe I have some questions to answer…**

**Q: Is there going to be a lemon in this?  
A: Yes. Definitely **

**Q: Can I start a new topic on this on a roleplay site?  
A: You'll have to elaborate a little more on what you're asking before I can give you an answer - **_**Send me a Personal Message**_**. **

**Okay! I'll have to finish the latest chapter for my other story, and then I'll update this one. Don't worry, it won't take long, I promise**

Oh and I apologize for all the errors I made.

**Can I have 10 reviews? Pretty please? With the promise of a shorter wait for Chapter 7 instead of a cherry on top?**

**-IzWinchesterDevil. **


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Seven: And the Last Blossom Falls… **

"_Because the desire to __**fuck**__ you is overwhelming…"_

His words sounded in her mind once more, snapping her back to her senses. What was she thinking, offering a vampire her blood as nourishment? Sitting on her motel bed, Sakura tightly clenched the sheets beneath her and let out an angered growl. She was utterly _disgusted_ with herself for voicing such a stupid suggestion to the male Pureblood who had made an abrupt exit less than a minute ago.

She could not understand why she felt so compelled to do such a thing for him. He was not her master and she belonged to _no one. _

Sakura also loathed herself for not being able to handle the low ranking vampire earlier even if she had been caught off guard.

'_I'm still too weak,' _she thought to herself. Her anger was subsiding now and decided that to increase the process, a bath was a very good option.

On finding her towel at its designated area at the end of the bed, Sakura followed the familiarly calculated route to the bathroom to wash away – despite the fact that it may have been temporary – all her confusion, anger and repugnance…

* * *

"We found out the town's mystery," Sasuke said to Tsunade on his phone, "Through an informative source we now know that Madara has an underground society of vampires beneath this town."

"_How large is this society?" _

"…Vast…"

"_Hmm…I wasn't expecting anything such as this and I find this discovery quite unusual. How do you know that your source wasn't tricking you?"_

Sasuke hesitated in responding, hating having to mention anything about Sakura at the moment; but he was given no other option.

"Sakura sensed movement below us…somehow…"

"_And **you** didn't?"_

"No."

"_Strange," _Tsunade muttered, pausing for a minute before continuing. _"Alright…I want you to begin looking for an entrance to this society. I will dispatch a team to assist you. All members are currently without a mission, so I'm giving you the opportunity to decide the squad."_

Sasuke immediately answered, having already making his decision wisely without forethought.

"Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Kiba Inuzuka, Neji Hyuuga, Shikamaru Nara…and Karin…"

"_Very well. I'd like to add another member. She's new and I'm very certain that she'll be very helpful in this mission. Her name is Tenten – a Noble Vampire. Would you like to know her abilities?"_

"No…just be certain that Karin is sent here. I want them all here at the earliest…"

Sasuke brought the conversation to an abrupt end and hastily made his way back to the room. Gratefully, Sakura seemed to have been taking a shower, so in the short time of her absence, he took three more bags of blood from the refrigerator and once again made his way out into the empty darkness.

He had enough blood to supply him for two more days and he knew by then, the squad would arrive. Since his wound was caused by a sliver blade, it took longer than usual to heal and until then, it was likely that the bleeding would not cease. To accelerate that process much rest was required of the Pureblood; rest in the form of sleep. However he knew that it would be unwise to be near Sakura, whose scent was enticing enough to make him attack her; and that was precisely what he had been trying to avoid…

* * *

The team arrived precisely two days later and Sasuke was pleased that his interaction with Sakura, which had been very limited, would lessen to none at all now that there were more people to work with. He was also contented that fresh blood was available to him to feed _all_ of his hungry desires. For the first time, his needs had become a painful nuisance that required much effort to contain; and Sasuke wasted no time in fulfilling those lusts. Moments after the new team arrived, the stoic vampire arranged for a separate motel room for him and Karin...

A moan escaped Karin's lips when he instantaneously pierced through the skin of the female's neck with his now elongated teeth. He was immediately inebriated by the scent of the ever-flowing substance that pulsated through the veins of his servant. Fresh nourishment was always welcomed and it never failed to satisfy him.

Sasuke heard the vampire gasp when he sank his fangs deeper into her flesh and sucked at it with more force. He felt pressure building up in different parts of his body, but the one that was the hardest to ignore was the one just below his abdomen.

This was the sole reason why feeding was only meant to be done between _mates_…

* * *

Everyone met in Kakashi's motel room, making themselves comfortable on the available chairs and even on the small bed. Kiba was the last to enter, Sakura noted. This team was made of three werewolves, two humans and three vampires. Even though the majority of the group consisted of the 'tolerable' races, Sakura could not help the feeling of uneasiness among the few vampires who were appointed for the mission.

Kakashi was the one to begin the conference.

"Alright…as we have been well informed, there seems to be an underground movement of vampires. And it can be _assumed_ that Madara Uchiha holds a place there, however we're _certain_ that this society is being led by him. Tsunade has sent us here to find an entrance into this underworld and that is precisely what we'll do. Sasuke has informed me that the vampire he interrogated was found in the subway routes, so that's one area we'll thoroughly investigate…and I'm sure none of you will like the _other_ region…"

He paused to chuckle lightly.

"What do you mean we won't like it," Kiba interjected, "_C'mon_…I'm sure it's not _that_ bad!"

"It's the sewage tunnels of the town," Kakashi deadpanned, earning groans from both Naruto and Kiba.

"Hmm…you knew already that you were assigned to that area?" Kakashi asked, with a sarcastic amusement.

"WHAT?" the two werewolves yelled boisterously.

"I was kidding," Kakashi said and then continued with a more serious tone, "This team will be split into two search parties. Tenten, I've heard of your unique ability to locate chakra signatures through water. That skill of yours can be of great help in this mission…which is why I would like you to team up with Shikamaru Nara, Kiba Inuzuka and Neji Hyuuga to investigate the _sewage tunnels_."

"Wait! Kakashi, I thought you said you were kidding!" Kiba protested while Neji, Tenten and Shikamaru remained silent.

"Only to Naruto, I'm afraid. I apologize for not mentioning that…"

"And the other team will be the rest of us?" Sakura asked, sounding her voice for the first time, drawing back everyone's attention toward the mission.

"Precisely," Kakashi responded.

"Cool! So when do we start?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"As soon as Sasuke is…ready," Kakashi answered.

Kiba groaned. "Where is that vampire anyway?" the werewolf inquired, annoyed; and was even more infuriated when Kakashi told him that said vampire was feeding.

"Before we actually proceed with this mission, there's something Sakura has to brief us about," Kakashi stated and then everyone's attention turned to Sakura.

She informed the team of how the vampire that attacked her two days ago, resisted the _silver_ wire bindings she used on him. She and Sasuke arrived to the conclusion that somehow the vampires from the underworld were stronger than they should be. That was the only thing they discussed in the days they waited for the team's arrival; and very little was said about the topic too.

They both had been keeping their distances from each other. Sakura was glad that she did not have to interact with the vampire much since he was hardly near the motel and only came to the room if he needed blood from the refrigerator.

The door creaked open behind them.

"Finally…the Blood Sucker King has arrived," Kiba mocked.

Sakura tensed upon a sudden realization – Sasuke was on her team again…

* * *

"I'm sorry for calling for you so suddenly. I hope you didn't have to cancel anything important because of me," Yumi apologized to Tsunade and gestured her to have a seat on the opposite side of the small table.

"I haven't been busy, so there is no need to apologize," Tsunade assured her before asking, "What was it you wished to see me about? It sounded urgent."

Yumi looked down at her hands nervously; then after some time she decided to speak, trusting her intuition that Tsunade should be warned, before she departed this world.

"My time here is short, and I know that what I want to tell you is of utmost importance," Yumi began, "Years ago I had a vision of something that may come to pass. I informed someone of it but only after I did, I realized that I'd made a mistake by doing so."

"What did you see?" Tsunade asked.

"I cannot say…I was forbidden to utter a word of it," Yumi replied with a hidden apology.

"I don't understand…if you want me to know about it then why are you so concerned about following orders?" Tsunade questioned with an angry confusion evident in her tone.

"It means exactly what I'm saying – I _cannot tell you_ what I saw. It's impossible." Then the elderly woman opened her mouth, sticking her tongue out to reveal what looked like a black inked tattoo. The image was an eye surrounded by a tribal pattern of swirls, perfectly symmetrical on Yumi's tongue.

However, with a second assessment with her eyes and with the use of her great deal of wisdom, Tsunade was able to figure out that what she was shown was not a tattoo.

"It's a _seal," _Tsunade comprehended and Yumi nodded. It was simple to conclude that the seal's purpose was to prevent Yumi from telling anyone what she saw, raising many questions in Tsunade's mind.

"I see," Tsunade said, frowning, "So you can't even tell me who put this on you…or at least _show_ me anything?"

Yumi shook her head and answered, "This seal is special. It prohibits me from showing you anything as well. That's what the _eye_ signifies. What I can tell you though is that the owner of this seal is not human…and very powerful."

Tsunade blew out a frustrated sigh. She was bemused, shocked and was trying her best to maintain a calm and collected façade. Yumi continued to speak.

"Tsunade, I know that there's nothing much I can do, but I thought that it would be best to warn you before I die: Everything is not always as they seem. The people you consider righteous may be the malevolent ones; the ones you consider friend may be your foes…but it all depends on your definition of what is right and wrong. My advice to you is that you make your choices wisely and that you have minimal trust in the cunning illusionists around you…"

* * *

Madara handcuffed the female vampire to the bedpost before leaving to attend to the person on the other side of the locked door. He fastened his black, silk robe before unlocking the door to his bedroom chamber to find Pein kneeling respectfully.

"Good night, Lord Uchiha; please forgive me for interrupting," Pein apologized as he was still in kneeling position.

"You may rise," Madara relieved him before continuing, "What's so important that you had to disrupt my feeding session?"

"My men found out some news worth your knowing…and I'm afraid you won't like it," Pein responded after he rose to his feet. "Slayers of the Dark Coven Organization were investigating Costin Town and have learnt about Catacomb City, My Lord. They have yet to discover the entrances; however I highly doubt that they are incapable."

Madara tapped his index finger against the door frame. He did not think that the slayers would be able to find his society so quickly. Despite that though, Madara did not fret about the new situation; he did not even consider it a problem. There was a strange feeling of confidence that seemed to be present within him ever since the Prophecy had been revealed and he just could not help it.

His blood-red gaze met Pein's lilac one.

"I trust that you'll do everything in your power to stop them from entering…or at least from discovering the _barrier_."

"I will," Pein assured, before taking his leave to round up a group to secure the city's entrances…

* * *

Since Sakura had been familiar with the subway routes from her previous visit, she had no problem moving around without fumbling with the calculations of her steps. It also helped that she simply had to follow the footsteps of her teammates to know her way around. This time she and the team journeyed further into the tunnels with the intention of finding a doorway of some sort, to the underground society of vampires.

The team traveled in silence for most of the journey, with the exception of Naruto's occasional nonsensical comments followed by his own boisterous laughter. Sakura would hear an annoyed Kakashi ordering the young werewolf to be quiet from time to time, with the hint of a desperate hope that said werewolf would actually comply.

From the sound of those two voices, Sakura was able to determine that Kakashi was walking just ahead of her while Naruto was somewhere to her far right.

Sasuke's location was distinguished when he uttered his occasional 'Hn' to Kakashi's orders. The noise was almost inaudible, but from that Sakura could tell that he was far ahead of them all. She noted that Sasuke still maintained the great physical gap between him and her, but pushed the thought away as fast as it had surfaced. It irritated her how the matter seemed to plague her mind so often when she should be glad that she would no longer need to make any sort of close contact with the vampire.

Suddenly Kakashi came to a halt, causing Sakura to bump into his back and his hand went around her shoulders to steady her.

"We have company," Kakashi informed before she could begin to question his actions.

Sakura heard Sasuke drawing his sword in the distance, ahead...followed by a hiss. No one moved.

"Who are you?" asked a sinister voice. It belonged to someone she could not recognize.

Noticing the evil intent in the unknown speaker's voice, Sakura unsheathed her wakazashi and clutched its hilt tightly, prepared for an attack.

"It's common courtesy to introduce oneself to another before inquiring said person's name," Kakashi said wittily.

"Nonsense. _You_ are the intruders and this is _my_ territory," the male contradicted. "However…it's only right that you know the name of the one that will send you to your graves. You can call me _Chikushodo_…"

* * *

"This is _ridiculous_…but I love it anyway…" Tenten remarked on noticing the chakra signature not too far away. "We've only just entered the sewage area and we already got ourselves an opponent!" She said those words with such excitement; it did not fail to amaze her teammates.

Without hesitation, she readied her weapons of choice – a pair of Okinawan Sai: dagger-like truncheons that had two arched prongs projecting from each side of their hilts. This pair was specially designed for a vampire's use as the prongs and hilt were made of metal, making it safe for a vampire to wield without having to fear for accidentally taking his own life, while the truncheon was made of pure silver, which was what made it exceptional for slaying creatures of the same race.

"Don't get too excited," Neji said to his new colleague straight-forwardly, "Pay attention to his physical appearance."

Tenten looked at the man in front of them more carefully…and frowned. His physical manifestation was absolutely _absurd_. The male being before them had long, loose, straight fiery hair that stopped at his lower back. He was pale like a corpse; his face, lifeless, bearing thick studded piercings: a diagonal bar through the bridge of his nose; two embedded, vertically on each side of his upper cheek and two other piercings on either side of his chin. His eyes were the most peculiar feature of his body – they were lilac, containing concentric circles around the pupil.

"_Wow_…he's a _queer_ one…" Kiba commented.

"Queer indeed," Neji agreed.

"Who the hell are you?"Kiba questioned as he positioned himself to attack.

"To answer your question, I am called _Ningendo. _And I will not let you beyond this point…_" _

* * *

Kakashi took some time to visually analyze their enemy – from the long fiery hair that was pulled back into a high ponytail, to the unique pale purple eyes and various facial piercings – however there was nothing he could gather about the man's abilities…and entirely no clue as to what type of being he actually _was_.

That _was_, until Chikushodo summoned a giant multi-headed dog…

The team was given no time to think at all; immediately everyone scattered to avoid the chaotic attacks of the creature's paws, each equally equipped with sharp claws. The creature's irregular hits made it difficult for Sakura to predict a safe spot where she could easily avoid the attacks. Not for a moment could she stay completely still to feel the animal's movements at the base of her feet.

"We need to split up," she heard Kakashi announce to everyone, followed by a loud grunt that came from him. A smash against the wall was heard subsequent to that, succeeded by the feel of the ground rumbling as large pieces of concrete hit the floor.

"Kakashi?" Sakura shouted worriedly as her head whipped around to the direction from which the sound came.

"I'm fine," he assured, his voice sounding strained as he tried to recover from the blow, "Naruto and I will deal with this monster; you and Sasuke target Chikushodo. I doubt he can be easily defeated so I want you to escape as soon as you both find an opening. Our main objective is to find an entrance into the underworld. Understood?"

"Hn…"

"But what about if –" Sakura began to protest, but Kakashi cut her off.

"It's an _order_, Sakura."

"Fine," Sakura responded after a few second's hesitation. She hated when Kakashi thought he could handle everything on his own. She knew that the true reason behind his orders was so that Sakura would be out of danger as soon as possible. He was too protective – one of his few faults; but she understood that this was only due to the fact that he was the one who took the responsibility to complete her parents' role, only in a different way. Sakura never saw Kakashi as a father figure in her life, simply because she was headstrong that no one could ever replace her _real_ father. Kakashi was more to her like the older brother she never had.

It was almost impossible to get around the large dog since he possessed so many heads.

The dog's barking came from everywhere, echoing through the tunnels and confusing Sakura's sense of direction exceedingly, that she felt more in control in a busy city.

Suddenly she felt someone's cold hand grab her sweaty one, and pulled her into a run.

"Naruto's creating a diversion," she heard Sasuke brief her as they ran. They kept running and as they did, the sounds of the ruckus behind them were becoming even less and less audible.

Unexpectedly, Sasuke came to a stop and let go of her hand, placing his palm against her stomach to prevent her from bumping into him. Then he removed his hand as soon as she was steady and took a few steps forward, isolating himself from her once more.

"I see you were able to get past the creature," Chikushodo said to them, "But I assure you, winning a fight against me is impossible…"

"Hn…we'll see," Sasuke told the being and Sakura caught the sound of the smirk in his voice. She wondered if Sasuke intended to completely defeat their opponent and had forgotten Kakashi's instructions. She kept quiet, though, as part of her _wanted_ to stay on and fight as it meant that she would get the opportunity to ensure Kakashi's survival…somehow.

The familiar, but ever so terrifying sound of a thousand birds filled the air and Sakura knew Sasuke was preparing to charge at the enemy. But instead, he spoke…to her.

"I want you to act as though you're about to attack him, but at the opportune moment, get past him. Understood?"

"Like I'd take orders from _you_!" she spat, truly enraged. There was no way she was going to leave Kakashi – the only family she had – who was struggling to survive his battle, for the sake of some pathetic mission…

* * *

Shikamaru was silent from the moment his team entered the sewage tunnels. He was too busy scrutinizing the enemy to say a word. Mere observations taken visually were not enough and that was where he decided it was time to join in the battle.

Shikamaru noted that Neji's attacks seemed to be _most_ effective seeing as he _was_ a master of advanced taijutsu. However their opponent seemed faster and was capable of dodging the Pureblooded Hyuuga's unpredictable blows.

"There are _four_ of us here…and _one_ enemy. We can't defeat him if we continue to attack separately!" Shikamaru told the others. They had already approached the enemy with the wrong technique. They were too hasty.

"He's right…we should surround his ass!" Kiba said in agreement.

Neji distracted Ningendo with a few more attacks so that Kiba and Tenten could get to respective locations behind said enemy. Then he retreated, making a back flip to his previous spot beside Shikamaru. At this point no one moved and Neji was able to see Ningendo's chakra through his clan's bloodline ability – the Byakugan. With the use of the Byakugan, three features were available to the wielder; the ability to see the chakra pathway system was only one of them.

The chakra flow of their enemy seemed to be of a regular human's. Neji frowned, drawing the conclusion that Ningendo was in fact…_human_.

How was it that a mere human could posses such agility?

"Ready everyone?" Shikamaru asked the team and everyone nodded.

'_This is a game of chance. Now we'll see if this man is really human… If I'm wrong, we may actually be defeated...' _Neji thought before charging forward…

* * *

Sasuke thought that Sakura would be stubborn. It was useless to argue with her, so he decided that he would simply just use force. With his Chidori-free hand, he roughly grabbed Sakura's arm and began to run, not caring if Sakura could keep up with his speed.

Then when they were close enough to the target, Sasuke slammed his Chidori into the man's chest, simultaneously pushing Sakura past him, hoping that she would think wisely and keep running…

Everything happened too quickly, giving her no time to think; but the moment Sasuke released her after that forceful push, Sakura kept running. She kept going until she was sure she had reached far enough from the battles behind her.

She saw no sense in going back for if she did, she knew she would die. And what good was she dead?

Her head whisked around at the echo of a crash. She stopped running completely, finding the new rumbling sound to be strange. She clutched her sword, but remained still.

There was a strong vibration being emitted from the tunnel's floor and its strength increased with the sound of the thunderous noise that accompanied it.

It was then, Sakura decided to will herself to run…

Something was coming after her…

* * *

Sakura was thankful that she exercised regularly or else running at her current speed would have been painful and tiring to great extremes. She felt the hot breath of the animal behind her and used it to determine the distance between her and the creature; and from what she calculated, it was _very_ close.

'_I can't keep up like this. This thing could go on forever…and I'll stop running some time soon out of exhaustion,' _Sakura thought, as she tried to formulate a plan. She had no intention to keep running until Sasuke or anyone else arrived to help her. No, Sakura was an independent woman. She had faced many battles before when she was an independent slayer…and succeeded. However, never had she encountered any race that could summon multiple, mutated creatures.

Sakura had eventually come to the decision that it was time to at least _begin_ defeating her new enemy.

She ceased her running and immediately forced her blade into the direction she assumed the monster was; and when it sunk through a hard surface, she knew she had hit her target. The animal's flesh was tough, somewhat like the meat of a grass-fed ox, making it tremendously difficult to draw her wakazashi out of the four-legged creature. And it gave her no time to move away as the beast fell forward, the hilt of her sword striking her chest with immeasurable pressure.

The immense pain engulfed her upper body instantly, and seemed to have spread throughout. Her back felt very moist and it did not take long for her to realize that she was bleeding, profusely, and soon enough, she felt numbness in her left arm and right leg.

Breathing had never been so difficult. It was like…battling against a strong current in an ocean of great depths…

* * *

"Sasuke!" Kakashi hollered to the vampire who was currently engaging in a heated hand-to-hand combat with Chikushodo. He was giving the enemy no chances to summon any more animals, the last one being the rhino that went in Sakura's direction.

Kakashi seemed to have understood Sasuke's intentions and wasted no time in launching his own attacks against the opponent.

"I take it you destroyed that dog," Sasuke said in between attacks.

"Where's Sakura?" Kakashi asked instead of providing an answer. And at the mention of the pink-haired human's name, Sasuke noticed how strange said woman's chakra signature felt. It's flow appeared to be irregular and incredibly faint…_dangerously_ faint.

"_Fuck!"_ Sasuke cursed.

"What's the matter?" Naruto asked his teammate.

"Sasuke…go find Sakura! We'll hold off this guy!" Kakashi ordered on feeling Sakura's depleted chakra levels as well. He was unsure of what happened…but in a worried state, Kakashi said a silent prayer to the Shinto Gods that Sasuke would reach her in time…

* * *

Her legs trembled and pained with every move she made, as she forced herself to crawl…as fast as she could. The wounded beast behind her was still breathing…and the scar she caused made it difficult to move just yet. But she knew that sooner or later it would once again be on all for legs, charging at her with an immense rage. And she was also well aware that sooner or later, she would not be more than twenty feet away from the animal. But it did not hurt to try, right?

"I see you have survived the work of one of my Six Paths…" a voice above and in front of her said.

Sakura stopped pulling herself forward with her good hand and faced upward from where the voice came.

"W-Who…are y-you?" she forced out of her mouth, cringing at the pain the effort caused.

"Hm…seeing as you've made it thus far, it's only fair that you learn my name. I am _Pein_…"

Sakura surrendered holding her weight up when she coughed, bringing up a liquid that tasted something akin to rusting iron - _blood_.

"As a _reward_," she heard Pein continue, "I shall end your suffering…_human_…"

The last thing Sakura heard was the unsheathing of a sword, followed by an audible, "Bansho Tenin."

And then, her body was uncontrollably pulled like metal attracted to a magnet. Subsequently, her automatic movement came to an abrupt stop when an intense sharpness pierced through her where her chest wound was…

Unable to scream, she gasped…

* * *

The wind began blowing tremendously and so unexpectedly that Tsunade had no time to prevent the newspapers from scattering into the air. She sighed. Now the dried leaves from the garden which she had neglected earlier on in the day had flown into the porch.

At the center of the garden, the cherry blossom tree that rustled violently in the gushy breeze had one pink flower left, but no matter how hard the wind blew, it struggled to stay attached…

* * *

The head of the rhino rolled across to the other side of the narrow hallway that had become that way due to the colossal damage the walls took. He finished the monstrous creation before it could even begin to recover and followed the trail of crimson that stained the corridor, in lightening speed.

The frightening thing was, the closer he thought he got to her, the more her chakra seemed to fade…and sent of the blood he desired, stronger...

* * *

She felt herself _levitating. _And everything around her seemed strange. Her eyes were opened, but there was no _darkness_; she was not breathing, but she was _alive… _

'_What's going on?' _Sakura wondered.

Then, her head felt lighter and soon she was struggling to keep her body weight up – she was in _water_!

Sakura found that now she could breathe for she was gaping for air as she struggled to keep her head above the water.

"Here…take my hand," a woman's gentle voice said to her. Sakura opened her eyes to see what a visually capable human would call a 'person'. The woman was also in the water…but she looked as though she knew how to swim since keeping her head above the water appeared to be as easy as breathing for her.

"I-I can't swim…" Sakura told the woman, a hint of fright in her voice.

"I know, I know. But you need to try and stay above the water…or you'll drown," the woman responded calmly, "Just take my hand and you'll be fine…"

Sakura did not hesitate, and grabbed hold of the lady's hand, only to be pushed violently by the choppy waters…and lost her grip…

* * *

Hazel eyes watched intently at the cherry blossom, fighting the battle to stay onto the branch; fighting to…survive…

* * *

It was hard to breathe. Her insides became filled with the contents of the vast ocean…

She was going under…

* * *

A shocked gasp escaped her lips as the last pink flower became torn apart from the tree, severed by the invisible knife of the sharp winds.

And Tsunade did not know why, but as the cherry blossom disappeared into the dark night, she fell back into her seat…and she cried…

* * *

**Okay! I've already started working on the next chapter! So that should be out by…****15****th**** July 7, 2011****! So look out for it!  
**

**I kind of had a writer's block for this chapter but I'm pleased with the way things turned out. Sakura's on the verge of death…and I'm an evil authoress…so I wonder what's going to happen… (chuckles)…**

**I want at least 10 reviews for this chapter because I really need to know what you guys think. I kind of tried something a little new so…**

**ANYWAY – NEXT CHAP: **_**15**__**TH **__**July 7, 2011**_

_**-IzWinchesterDevil.**_


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Eight: Metamorphosis **

If not for his ability to sense chakra, Sasuke would have immediately thought that Sakura's soul had completely left its vessel. But time was of the essence and he was no God. Vampires were a special race; _not gods_. He could not prevent her soul from departing…nor could he rewind time.

To say that he was the least bit panicked would mean that he was lying; though the emotion was not felt on a major scale.

Strangely, in all that had been happening one woman's voice surfaced his mind, when thoughts were, at this point, rather arduous to formulate.

"…_the events will take place as they are meant to happen; all __you__ need to do is trust your instincts and the prophecy will be fulfilled. And remember, in this case, you cannot change what is destined to be…"_

The Oracle's words resounded in his mind; yet he found it hard to believe that Sakura's death was a part of the Prophecy.

He found it hard to think with the intoxicating smell of the dying woman's blood invading the atmosphere. Bit by bit it was driving him to a deadly insanity. It was strange, the power of this woman's blood. Never had he felt such a craving so difficult to contain.

With much effort, Sasuke forced himself to discard those sinful thoughts and focused on the matter at hand. He recalled Yumi's last words once more and analyzed them carefully, as fast as he could.

He convinced himself that this was meant to happen and walked closer to the almost lifeless body bathed in crimson. As he walked he tried his best to relax himself so that he could unleash his True Form as quickly as possible and removed his black shirt, tossing it aside.

He felt the wave of relief as the energy spread across his entire being and he could already see his skin beginning to darken. He felt his dark tresses begin to elongate, as it slid along his bare back. Then, protruding its way through the darkened skin of his back were two, long boney structures of the same complexion. There was no blood or pain as they broke through his flesh and when they had fully emerged, they extended to reveal two large bat-like wings made of thick layers of skin making it not as delicate as a regular bat's.

Without a second thought, he put all of his trust in his intuition and knelt beside the pale female human and closed his eyes, concentrating on the chakra of the woman's _soul_.

This particular process was tricky. It all depended on timing – a millisecond too early or too late could result in unforgivable death and the violation of life-governing laws that would immediately sentence one to an _excruciating_ death.

He waited. A soul's chakra was what structured the soul. A human's soul was made of many thin strands of chakra that required acute focus in order to be detected by sight or by physical feel. Only when the last strand of chakra was about to depart from the vessel could the procedure begin. It was a process that would never allow the soul to escape; a process that would trap the soul under very restraining conditions.

His eyes opened at the feel of the last fragment of chakra rising and Sasuke hovered over Sakura's body, lowering his lips to her neck…

'_This was destined to be…' _was his last thought before he gave in to his temptation – that _sinful bliss_…

* * *

"You're late," she said, staring at her origami pieces – the products of the loneliness that found itself present within her whenever he left. He was always so busy; never there…never with her. Konan regarded this as her punishment for being incapable of protecting the one Nagato considered dearest to him; the one _she_ had also loved so exceedingly…

"I had a mission," he responded stoically as he removed his coat and hung it on the rack.

"Was it difficult?" she asked, trying to hide the anguished emotions she felt.

"Not in the slightest," he said, "I must report to Lord Uchiha…"

All this time, as he spoke to her, she avoided his appearance; his gaze. And when the door slammed shut, she knew that he had left her again…_alone_.

* * *

"She's dead, Lord Uchiha. I saw to it myself," Pein informed the dark haired vampire.

Their gazes met. "Are you sure?" Madara questioned. He felt uncertain; feeling of victory was absent.

"Yes, my Lord," Pein answered truthfully.

"Then bring me her body," Madara ordered, sending his disciple on yet another mission…

* * *

The moment he bit down into the snow white flesh, he regretted it, for he knew that he would at some point, need to pull away. But for now, for as long as the procedure allowed he relished the rich taste of the blood he desired from the very first day he was able to sense it.

His mind was more inebriated than ever as the warm, salty liquid beguiled every one of his taste buds before smoothly running down his throat.

His world was hazy, but in the little sense he had left, Sasuke made the fateful hand seals and muttered the words that he knew he would regret immensely in the future. The words were spoken in Japanese tongue and as soon as the last word escaped Sasuke's lips, the burning sensation on his hard stomach began as though his skin was of very close proximity to flames of a raging fire.

But he was grateful for the pain – it distracted him from his prior temptations. And he accepted the pain as punishment; punishment for what he had done. And then he discarded the thought as he did not need anyone's forgiveness; not even _hers_.

Clenching his stomach tightly, he fought the urge to groan as he knelt beside a still and unconscious Sakura. He heard her moan and he knew right away, that she was feeling some of the seal's effects too. He knew that experiencing all of the seal's first effects would be impossible for her, especially since the metamorphosis had already begun, resulting in her temporary, but deep slumber.

Another wave of scorching pain flowed over the surface of his stomach and then it was all over. Breathing heavily, he looked at the area where the pain had previously resided to see the tattoo-like markings that ran along his stomach beginning from the part just below his chest, leading down to the part centimeters above his groins.

The symbol was that of a tribal dragon, its body swirled around a familiar emblem: a fan-like crest, the top portion colored in red while the bottom was white. Sasuke recognized the crest for he had spent most of his childhood around it. The fan distinctly reminded him of his family…_the Uchiha Clan_. And at the thought of his brethren, the guilt he felt for what he had done to Sakura was completely erased. It had to be done because _he would _avenge his clan, and until that happened, he would keep Sakura's soul attached to her body, even against her will.

Effortlessly his body's appearance began to revert to that of a regular human young man's and once his wings had completely taken its place securely beneath the flesh of his back, Sasuke grabbed his shirt and started to re-clothe his upper body.

The sound of footsteps bounced off the walls of the tunnels, becoming louder and soon Kakashi, Naruto and Neji's team were at the scene.

As expected, Kakashi was at Sakura's side, examine her cataleptic form. His eyes widened in horror at the immediate sight of her bloodstained attire and desperately tired to locate the red substance's source. It did not take long for him to find the fatal chest injury. Kakashi stared at it in confusion. Sakura was alive – her chakra had been flowing normally; and that was the bewildering thing. Kakashi touched Sakura's pierced flesh. An injury of such was, without a doubt, capable of causing death. So how was it that Sakura survived? Any human of her caliber would have surely not.

Kakashi replayed that thought in his mind once more, _'Any __**human**__…would die…'_

He checked Sakura's chakra flow again, finding it to be between that of a human's and a _vampire's_…

The realization was horrifying, bringing with it immeasurable anger.

"What did you _do to her_?" Kakashi growled and sprang at Sasuke, grabbing the vampire's shirt with both of his hands.

Sasuke remained emotionless, despite Kakashi's rough gesture and responded in his usual monotonous tone.

"Exactly what you're thinking…"

Sasuke's eyes looked straight into Kakashi's, who had now revealed his Sharingan Eye.

"It was not like I had any other option, Kakashi," Sasuke pointed out coldly.

"Sasuke's right, Kakashi. If Sasuke hadn't made that move, Sakura would be dead as we speak and the Prophecy would remain unfulfilled," Neji spoke, making the werewolf see the logic in Sasuke's actions.

He released Sasuke from his threatening grasp and moved over to Sakura once more. She looked as though she was asleep, but he knew that within her, the metamorphosis was in progression – her change from _human to vampire_.

"I take it that you've bonded with her as well," he said to Sasuke, who instead of verbally responding looked away, his hand still atop the bond-seal that was covered by his clothes.

"We need to take her back to the base...the one we were supposed to stay at during this mission," Shikamaru opinionated, "If I recall correctly, there should be a chamber in that house that's designed for someone undergoing the metamorphosis…"

* * *

Azami walked along the pathless, never-ending world of vast, blinding _white_.

Ahead of her, she could see, stood a tall figure; and as she drew nearer the image before her became clearer, revealing a woman of a very familiar appearance. She possessed rose pink hair that looked brilliantly bright in the white, sky less background. The woman's back was facing her, but Azami did not need a face to recognize the person with the unusual yet beautiful feature.

"Sakura," Azami addressed, making her presence noticed in the process.

Said woman's head whisked around to face her. She wore the look Azami expected her to possess – confused and fearful. Still Sakura said nothing as though she had been too petrified to speak.

Suddenly all of that was forgotten when something strange began.

Out of the corner of her eye, Azami caught sight of a black spot pooling on the snow-white ground. It came across as a dark liquid of some sort at first, but after a more careful look at it, Azami realized that the substance consisted of tiny solid particles like shards of graphite.

Slowly the shards began to levitate, eventually forming a shadowy outline of a bald, human figure that enclosed a mass of white similar to the environment. Later it appeared to be in a sitting position on the ground, its outlined left arm propped upon its left knee. The being possessed no distinguishable features; its sex was undetermined, however Azami was able to recall this faceless and empty entity from a past encounter.

"Why hello," the creature spoke in its voices like a chorus of people, making it sound almost demonic. "We meet again, Azami…"

* * *

The voices of the _thing_ in front of her made it impossible to distinguish whether it was male or female as it contained the tones of both sexes, like a choir of people speaking the same words simultaneously. No matter how jovial the creature seemed, its unhallowed chorus sent chills down her spine; made her pores rise – the fear was overwhelming…

And Sakura felt pathetically yet _shamelessly_ powerless.

Glancing at the woman beside her – Azami, she recalled – Sakura noted how calm she was. In fact she seemed to have known the character. It gave Sakura the reassurance she needed – she was not alone. However it did nothing to chase away her fear.

"And I see you're not alone this time," the creature continued to speak to Azami.

With great effort, Sakura willed herself to talk.

"Who a-are y-you?" she asked the bodiless being in a shaky tone.

"Oh, she speaks!" it exclaimed almost jokingly and let out a low chuckle. "I'm called by many designations. I'm the Timeless Being; I'm the World; I'm the Universe; I am All; I am _One_ and I am…_God…_"

Sakura stared wide-eyed at the figure at the last revelation. Was he really God? If so, was she _dead_?

"No, child, you are not dead," it answered Sakura's unvoiced question, "If you were, your soul would have already been at its decided location."

"And by the looks of things, we're not exactly in Limbo either," Azami spoke composedly, "If I remember correctly, right now we're at the _brink_ of Limbo. I take it that our place has not yet been decided?"

The ethereal form laughed for a moment before answering.

"Child you are neither correct nor wrong. You _are_ _undecided_. However, you are also here because it is not _time_ for your place of afterlife residence _to be_ decided. Each individual in the world of your kind is given a purpose. It is up to them to succeed and though failure to do so does not hinder or cease their departure from the world of the living, your circumstances are…_different_. Here I am before you, not to cast you into the realm of Limbo, but to _prevent_ your entrance."

The response was interesting and raised Sakura's curiosity levels greatly. Why were she and Azami so special that they could escape something so unavoidable such as _death_?

The being of many names stood.

"What circumstances?" Sakura spoke, more confidently now.

"Don't be so impatient child," it rebuked, "The answers don't have _feet_. You'll find out when you awaken. And I _believe_ it is time for you to leave."

The Timeless Being raised his left arm, seeming to be pointing at something between them.

Sakura and Azami both followed its fingerless hand to find a large, chiseled stone door. They turned so that their bodies were completely facing it.

"You must both step through the gates at the same time since your souls are contained in the same vessel. Failure to do so will cause one of your souls to be locked out of the body and said soul will disintegrate into the Realm of the Unknown Path…"

Sakura wanted to know more, but her eagerness to know about why her soul was not yet wanted in the world of the afterlife, got the better of her.

Both women looked at each other then nodded upon understanding what was explained and did an audible count from one to three, before stepping into the vast nothingness before them…

* * *

The smell of blood seemed to dominate the entire atmosphere, making her stomach aware of its emptiness and everything else forgotten. The scent along with the hunger did something to her, but she put that thought on hold when her attention drew to the cold restraints that bounded her wrists and ankles, preventing much movement in her lying position. The surface beneath her was not hard…but neither was it comfortable.

She opened her eyes and was terrified the minute she did. She could not understand her environment, let alone begin to describe it. Instantly, her eyes began to hurt as if they were being strained. She shut them tightly to force away the pain.

What was happening to her?

She could smell blood everywhere, the scent becoming stronger and stronger by the minute. It was maddening, her sudden cravings. For what, she had no clue…or at least, that was what she tried to convince herself to believe. However, the reality loomed somewhere in the dark of her mind.

The reality was the truth…

The truth was the circumstance which the Timeless Being spoke of…

And the truth was hard to accept.

Sakura wished she could simply shut away what she had now become. She wished she could rewind time. But not all wishes came true and unfortunately these wishes of hers were heading in that direction.

Now, being a _human_ became her _fantasy_; and being a _monster_ had become her _reality_. Oh, how the tables had turn.

She felt tears well up behind her closed lids and a lump formed at the back of her throat. She failed to keep her tears from escaping and when they did, they felt hot against her cheek. She despised herself more than ever. She had become the very being she hated; the very being that caused her parents' deaths – a _vampire_.

Sakura could not recall how it all happened, but she pledged to herself that the vampire responsible for her current state would be destroyed by her hand.

"Is anyone there?" she asked. Was she captured? Was her captor the one who changed her? Only Pureblooded Vampires and vampires closest to those were capable of performing to conversion of a human to vampire. Was it _Madara_?

"IS ANYONE HERE?" she screamed when no one answered. At this point she did not care if she had been in the enemy's lair. With the rage she harbored at the moment, she felt capable of killing anyone who crossed her path, _anyone_.

Still, out of all the anger welling up her insides, Sakura felt afraid to open her eyes again. She feared the foreign vision that would come into view as well as the awkward pain that accompanied it.

The aroma of blood filled her nostrils once again, more noticeable than before, doing many things to her mind. Her breathing grew heavy. She realized her mouth had become completely dry and she felt a thirst: a thirst like someone in need of water after a long journey across a desert without it. The only difference was that she thirsted for what she _smelt_.

"No," she muttered, refusing to accept the truth, "I'm not a monster! I'm NOT A MONSTER!"

Suddenly she heard the sound of doors opening…

* * *

"She's awake," Kakashi told the others as he entered the room and walked over to Sakura who was currently squirming frantically on the bed. After arriving at the base, Kakashi ordered the group to speak nothing of Sakura's bond with Sasuke. The less she knew the better. He was aware that all of this would be too much for Sakura to cope with and he also accepted the verity that Sakura would soon come to realize the new relationship that had been created between her and Sasuke – there was no hiding it. It was only a matter of time.

But for now, Kakashi decided that the more important issue was Sakura's well being. There were numerous cases where transformations went wrong. Unsuccessful transformations resulted in mentally imbalanced vampires who solely lived off of their thirst for human blood, with no sense of logic – D-Rank Vampires. To prevent this, Sakura would be required to drink the blood of her vampire creator – Sasuke Uchiha. And Kakashi understood that such a task would be miserably difficult, considering Sakura's stubbornness.

When he got close enough to her, Kakashi placed his hand on her shoulders gently. This was the first time he felt so helpless in many years. The best he could possibly do was to provide comfort for Sakura and still, it had not seemed to be of much help.

"Sakura, it's me…Kakashi," he said to her softly, "I need you to calm down."

The words he spoke seemed more like desperate pleas rather than words of comfort.

"I _am_ calm," she said, her tone contained, but he knew she sounded that way only to succeed in convincing him. "I am calm…and I'll feel even _better_ if you release me…"

"No," he said bluntly, losing his soothing tone.

He saw how her eye brows knitted together as she let out an angered growl. Her behavior was much like a psychologically imbalanced person. No, more like…an animal. He realized that her level of normalcy was slowly decreasing.

"Why not?" she snapped at him, struggling against the restraints as though she intended to attack him.

"We need to wait until Sasuke gets back so that you can feed," Kakashi explained. There was no use hiding it since it was evident that she realized her condition.

Her eyes flew open in fury and he did not miss the new shade of green in her irises. They were no longer emerald, but _darker_ like midnight green. The fact that she began squinting also did not go unseen.

Sakura opened her mouth to speak.

"Is there something wrong with your eyes?" he asked her out of genuine concern before she could utter a word.

"They hurt," she said hesitantly before shutting her eyes once more.

This was the first time Kakashi heard her complain about her eyes. The fact that they were never a problem was the reason it caught all of his attention.

"What do you mean? When did this start?" he questioned before telling her to open them.

Sakura complied, however instead of fully opening them she began squinting like anyone would if a bright light had been flashed directly into them.

"It started just now…when I woke up," she answered.

Kakashi stared at the girl, a flutter of surprise whirling inside him. It did not take him much thought to figure out the cause for Sakura's predicament.

Sakura was _no longer blind…_

He did not know whether he should be delighted at the recognition or not, considering the circumstances from which it came. The metamorphosis from human to vampire allowed for the enhancement of all the regular human senses – olfactory sensations became stronger; tactual sensations became more susceptible and _visual abilities_ became more developed. In Sakura's case, she _attained_ her vision, but the extent of her visual skills was still questionable.

"It's alright. Nothing's wrong with you," he assured her…

* * *

By conversing with her, Kakashi was able to take Sakura's mind off the taunting smell. But she knew that soon enough, her mind would once more become immune to the technique; however she continued to commune with her guardian.

"What do you mean nothing's wrong with me?" she asked confusedly in between rapid breaths.

"You're experiencing pain simply because you have…gained vision, Sakura…"

What was this? A miracle or a nightmare?

It was an odd feeling, the ability to see. But not for a second did the newly acquired skill overwhelm her with excitement or happiness…or even gratefulness; especially not when she had been _cursed_ in the process.

The nothingness in her stomach was continuously growing and her limited movements were now reduced to absolutely none, though not because of how tightly she had been bounded. The cause was due to her vastly intensifying, physical _weakness_.

As expected, Kakashi's method seemed to be slowly failing. Unwanted things were winning over her attention.

Her eyes did not hurt as much as before so she managed to open them a bit wider. Above her on the ceiling and on the walls around her, she noticed very dark splatters. They were not black, but the foreign color was similar and for some strange reason, she seemed _attracted_ to it. She was drawn to its appearance – the stains were liquid and still fresh, seeing as how they ran down the walls; and the unfamiliar color created a strange sensation in her mouth. She felt stings in her gums where each of her canine teeth was located and soon said teeth were touching her bottom lip.

"What the fuck are those things on the walls?" she asked in a tone mixed with anger and fear.

"What are you talking about?" Kakashi asked in bewilderment as he looked to the ceiling and the walls, "There's nothing there except the olive colored paint, Sakura."

"I'm not crazy…" she muttered as she continued to look at the imaginary stains.

Sakura bit her bottom lip with all the strength she could muster in hopes that the pain would help her forget her craving. But her efforts proved to be futile as she did not possess the required strength to even make it _bleed_.

Her eyes darted about the room, staring at the stains again, now wearing a look of horror. Kakashi could not see them. Or was it that they truthfully did not exist?

She felt tired. She was ready to surrender; to submit herself to the _madness_.

* * *

Sasuke shut the door behind him as he entered the house and walked soundlessly down the hall, heading toward the basement stairs. At the entrance of the basement chamber, he was met with his other team members and found Kakashi in the room in which Sakura was being kept.

"It's about time," Kakashi said in greeting him, "She's already begun hallucinating. And she's dehydrated."

Sasuke looked over to the woman restrained to the small bed, her fangs already elongated – a mechanism triggered by immense thirst. She was still clothed in her bloodstained attire from her near-death experience previously and due to the bond, Sakura's blood had taken a stronger effect on him, raising his many needs. But the sexual tension was not untamable since he had indulged in the act earlier. Usually in an ordinary case, though he would feel absolutely no sexual desire once he had already satisfied himself. It was not surprising to him that things were different this time, still.

Their gazes met for a few seconds before Sakura broke away, but Sasuke did not fail to catch the fiery anger in Sakura's glare.

"So it was _you_ who did this to me," she hissed bitterly, still avoiding his eyes.

Sasuke made no reply to the enraged, newborn vampire and instead turned to Kakashi, "Release her hands only…"

Before Sakura could make any rash movements after her hand cuffs were gone, Sasuke was at her side, his hands firm on her shoulders. Then he brought her upright so that her lips were close enough to his _neck_.

"If you expect me to _bite_ you and drink your _filthy blood_, then I shall gladly assure you that _I won't_," she refused boldly, her breath warm against his neck.

Despite the outrageous feelings that instantly awakened within him, Sasuke contained himself. He did not argue with her for he had long predicted her behavior even before he arrived at the house. He carefully worked out Sakura's response to her situation during the time of his quick recovery from the seal's short after effects.

Turning his back to Sakura, Sasuke brought his wrist to his mouth and bit down, sinking his fangs deep into his own flesh in attempt to make it bleed enough. Then he pulled up the amount of blood required for his next action. He did not need too much; only enough to make Sakura become controlled entirely by her need to feed.

After that, without warning, Sasuke spun around and crushed his lips onto the stubborn female vampire's…

Entirely caught by surprise, Sakura had no time to react; Sasuke had already succeeded in prying her lips apart…and the liquid she longed for was already flowing down her throat.

When he was certain that Sakura would not choke, Sasuke allowed his tongue to dance with hers, one gliding over the other, tasting the remnants of the salty goodness; a goodness strong enough to build his libido to levels higher than he could possibly imagine. But once again he fought his urges even when a guttural moan sounded in Sakura's throat.

His tongue retreated into his mouth, only to let his lips linger on hers, softly biting and sucking at her lush, blood covered ones. He fought the impulse to moan, to prevent himself from enjoying and taking his actions to greater heights.

Sakura was the one to break his ministrations.

When there was no more of the substance left in Sasuke's mouth, she had instinctively lunged for a spot on his neck.

And at the climax of her intoxication, she sunk her lengthened teeth into the beautifully pale skin of the Pureblood…

* * *

**A/N: I think Sakura's going to regret this in the morning :-(**

**AND I'm not so pleased with this chapter…what do you think? I would appreciate at least 10 reviews with your opinions…please**?

**Before I continue, let me take this opportunity to apologize for not updating this on the promised day, however when I decided the released date, I DID NOT cater for the emergencies at work…sighs…I worked all week :/ **

**Anyway, I know many of you have questions about 'the bond' I mentioned in the story. I WILL reveal more about that in later chapters.  
**

**AND NOW…I want to say thanks to all of my readers and reviewers! Your Favs and reviews are very motivating and reassuring, so thank you all VERY, VERY much**_**XD**_

TO MichiiHaru-Chan:

__**Thank you for taking your time to review every chapter in The Dark Coven! I'm thrilled that you're enjoying this story and I promise to make things even better ^^ I'm in a bit of a rush so I can't answer any questions today. But at the end of the next chapter, I'll be sure to do that!**

**The next chapter should be out around 24****th**** July, 2011**

**IzWinchesterDevil**


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Nine: Existence Was Nothing But a Curse… **

When Tsunade was informed of Sakura's situation, the group was ordered to abandon their mission and immediately return home. Sasuke was not pleased and disagreed with Tsunade's decision greatly, commenting that it would do nothing but delay his goals. For all they knew, Madara Uchiha could have been residing beneath them and they were a hair's breadth from fulfilling the Prophecy; from avenging the Uchiha Clan and the other Pureblood clans that were killed as a result of his treachery.

For most of the journey, he kept to himself and continued to stay away from the _mate_ he had acquired under a very taxing circumstance. Though, however far he kept his physical being from her, it did nothing to stop his thoughts from lingering on the little, unwanted emotions that stirred within him…even if they were there for just a moment.

He blamed everything on the bond – the outraging lust; the uncharacteristic possessiveness. It was the truth: because of the bond's seal, Sasuke was expected to _feel_ something for his mate and he accepted that without complaint. But that was only because he knew those feelings were false; lies…merely _side effects_. And those side effects annoyed him to no end.

Currently the team was approximately one hour away from the Headquarters. Owing to Sakura's condition, they rarely made any stops in order to shorten the length of their journey; but whenever they did, it was merely to forcibly feed Sakura. Sasuke hated it as much as Sakura did, however it was to his disliking merely since at the end of each session, his desires were always left unquenched. It was almost as if he was being tortured. But Sasuke put up with the torment as he knew it would only go on for a month. After that, he was certain that Sakura would be physically strong enough to live off of the blood provided by the hospital with _very occasional_ feedings from him. For now, he strove to work on _patience_.

As he drove on the highway that led into the city, Sasuke took a glance up at the rear view mirror to see an unconscious Sakura whose head was resting against Kakashi's shoulder. Vampires hardly slept, however the first stages of Metamorphosis required a great deal of rest.

Sasuke willed himself to take his eyes off the female's sleeping form before any thoughts of her crept into his mind, and drew his attention to the road ahead…

* * *

Sakura was awoken at the feel of gentle nudges and when she opened her eyes, the bright light she still needed to get used to, entered her eyes. Her eyes felt strained for a moment, but the sensation subsided almost as soon as it came.

"We've arrived," Kakashi informed her as he opened the door of Sasuke's car.

She did not need any assistance exiting the vehicle. As she did, Sakura looked around her. Behind her were the sounds of cars and other vehicles. At some point during their journey, Kakashi told her about the different types of automobiles, and now she was able to distinguish the appearances among sedans, SUV s, convertibles, trucks and such. She also learnt about buildings, road signs and even colors as well as all the human races.

Sakura always thought that the _main_ human necessities in life were the only important things worth knowing of when she possessed sightless eyes. But now, as she looked at the outside world; now, as she _saw_ the outside world, Sakura understood the importance of knowing every little detail. She comprehended the purpose of the little things such as the white lines on the roads; why the traffic lights had different colors. The world was not black; it was _extraordinary_. It held things that were powerful enough to keep her mind off her miseries.

"This is the hospital…" she muttered to herself, gazing up at the huge building. She was able to recognize her environment through the sounds she usually heard whenever Tsunade called for her at the hospital. Though, she could only put names to the objects that moved and emitted sounds. Words were unrecognizable along with certain images on the signs.

"Tsunade is expecting us," she heard Sasuke say to her and the rest of the team. She looked to her side and was instantly met with his gaze. His eyes reminded her of the darkness she always knew when she had been blind. It was not a painful memory, but merely a reminder of her transition; of the fact that she was no longer what she used to be. And even though she was not happy with that transformation, Sakura did not waste her energy upon fretting about it as she knew it would change nothing at all.

Sakura broke out of her thoughts when Sasuke shifted his gaze and began to walk ahead of her. It was the first time their eyes met since she was last forced to drink his blood, hours ago. She was entirely clueless as to what he was thinking and she could not begin to read what his eyes held.

Before they left Costin Town, Sakura had taken an opportunity to catch a good look at the vampire responsible for the loss of her identity. Out of all the persons she had seen, she found Sasuke's physical attributes strangely astounding. His hair was just as dark as his eyes, and hung over both sides of his face, framing his cheeks and stopping at his jaw line which seemed more well-defined than others. He had pale skin; she was told most vampires possessed that trait.

Sakura had enough time to observe the various physical characteristics of different persons on her way home, but to her, Sasuke's seemed…beautiful in a _masculine_ way. The thought was absurd, she knew, but it was the best way for her to describe him, considering that her eyes were inexperienced.

At the end though, Sasuke's attractiveness meant nothing to her. The unwavering hatred she felt towards him was still present. It was…she was _sure_ of it.

Then _why_ did it seem as though she was trying to urgently convince herself?

* * *

The entire group sat in Tsunade's office, waiting with a great deal of patience for said woman. They were told that she had been conducting a surgery. Sakura guessed that the patient's case was critical since they had been waiting for nearly three hours. She was tired of staring at the objects in the office, most of them being files and papers and the faux skeleton on its stand at the corner of the room.

"Man…this is too much!" Naruto exclaimed, having lost his patience and completely bored, "I'm going down to the café or something. When Granny Tsunade returns, just give me a call…"

He got up to leave, but just as he was halfway across the room, the platinum blonde woman, entered, sighing very audibly in frustration.

"Where do you think you're going, _Naruto_?" she asked, her voice containing strong evidence of tedium.

"Finally!" he said, "My legs were beginning to hurt, Granny…so I decided to go for a walk…"

The woman ignored Naruto's honest excuse and greeted everyone before taking her seat at her desk. Sakura did not fail to note the size of Tsunade's chest area – they were _by far_ the largest she had seen on any woman. Having heard much about the human body in her classes at school, Sakura did not further question whether such a feature was normal for women. Putting that aside, Sakura also found Tsunade to be quite beautiful, also having seen many women along her journey.

Her eyes were unusually colored, but whatever it was called it surely looked…_rich_. Her hair was almost as pale looking as her milky skin.

"Sakura," the woman began, her voice losing any sign of tediousness, sounding more leader-like, "I want to thoroughly examine you before you leave my office. Understood?"

Sakura nodded in reply. As usual, Tsunade got straight to business, not for once straying to anything that did not concern the important matters.

"Good. Now, before I take your reports, I'd like to have a word with Sasuke and Sakura…privately," Tsunade told everyone sternly, her eyes falling upon the mentioned individuals respectively.

Some of the members shot curious glances at one another, but Kakashi's stare did not waver from Tsunade's, looking almost threatening. Sakura could not comprehend the two people's communication and her curiosity peaked when Tsunade gave Kakashi a curt nod. They had made some sort of agreement, Sakura concluded. An agreement to what? Sakura longed to know, disliking the feeling she got. It was as though she was being kept in the dark again.

Tsunade waited until everyone was entirely out of earshot before beginning her conversation with the individuals whose presence she requested.

"I'm aware of what happened to you during this mission," she said to Sakura, "And I'm very sorry that it had to come to this…"

Sakura looked away at the walls to her right, although she knew Tsunade's apology was genuine. Her feelings about becoming a vampire were somewhat…bi-polar. One minute she was alright with just accepting what happened and the next she was loathing it. Even so, Sakura did her best in keeping her unsteady emotions to herself, locked behind a door she had hidden the key to.

When Sakura said nothing, Tsunade continued, this time, however speaking to Sasuke. She spoke to him with a higher level of seriousness than Sakura had ever heard before.

"I trust that you have obeyed _every rule_ of this organization, Uchiha? I hope you did because failure in doing so will result in your immediate execution regardless of who you are…"

"Hn…"

"Good…it would've been a shame to lose you, with consideration of your skills. You are, after all one of the most elite this organization has."

Sakura listened very intently to the words Tsunade had spoken to Sasuke, and there was one thing she could not quite comprehend. When Sakura opted to join the Dark Coven, Tsunade had not explained any mandatory rules to her. So what was the woman talking about? Whatever the rules were, it seemed to be something taken rather seriously since Tsunade implied that Sasuke's failure to abide by them would result in his death.

"What rules?" Sakura found herself asking and all eyes were on her. Both people watched her as though she had said something that was forbidden.

Sasuke was the first to look away, moving his eyes to a random area on Tsunade's desk; however, Tsunade's stare, still upon Sakura's became softer and a smile graced the older woman's lips before she spoke.

"I'm afraid it's not my place to tell you that," Tsunade said to her, "But soon, you'll come to know…I'm sure."

Sakura hesitated before nodding and muttering an unclear, "Okay", and Tsunade continued.

"Now I have a tight schedule ahead of me, so let's get back to business, shall we? Sakura, now that you've gotten your eye sight, there will be things you'll need to get adjusted to. So, starting from tomorrow you'll be meeting with an instructor who'll assist you with that at the organization's training grounds. This special training of yours should last a month and nothing more."

"Okay," Sakura said, indicating she understood the given orders and that she had no objections.

Then Tsunade said a few words to Sasuke before taking his report on the incomplete mission, after which he was dismissed.

Afterward, Sakura's medical examination commenced.

Tsunade checked all of her vital signs by taking Sakura's axillary temperature, testing her blood pressure, pulse rate and respiratory rate. The clinical was proceeded by a short eye examination which Sakura found to be very annoying since her eyes were not well adjusted to lights just yet.

"You'll get used to your eyes soon," Tsunade said, turning off the much loathed device Tsunade called the 'ophthalmoscope'.

"Your eyes are healthy. Your body temperature is…lower than the average human's – twenty degrees Celsius, to be exact," Tsunade reported and on noticing Sakura's shocked reaction of suddenly widening eyes, she added, "That's normal for a 'new born' vampire. In fact within a few days, your body temperature is expected to drop to _fifteen_ degrees Celsius which is the ideal temperature for a vampire."

After Sakura nodded hesitantly, Tsunade continued to give the results of the tests, "Your systolic blood pressure is a bit high…and this will rise in the future since blood vessels constrict when the body is exposed to cold temperatures, increasing blood flow. The same goes for your pulse rate. But as soon as your body temperature stops increasing – that is, until it reaches fifteen degrees Celsius – your pulse rate should become steady as well."

Sakura was sure to take in every detail of Tsunade's report. Basically, it appeared that the inner workings of a vampire's body were conducted at a faster rate than a regular human's. It was not surprising to Sakura, though. They just made it even harder to believe that she was no longer human.

Her conversation with Tsunade ended with a reminder of her training session scheduled for the next day, and then Sakura left the office to meet the others who were waiting in the hallway outside…

* * *

Sakura arrived at the organization's training grounds promptly at ten, the next morning. The place was fairly large, consisting of several rooms surrounding a huge stadium for which, Sakura assumed, was used mainly for combat training.

Upon entering the building, Sakura was guided to her instructor's location by one of the assigned guards. Through the mesh fencing, Sakura caught a glimpse of a familiar figure, busy with sorting through the contents of her overly large suitcase. As she continued to walk along the fencing with the silent guard, Sakura wondered why on earth anyone would have a suitcase in the middle of a large, empty field…

But then her eyes fell on the woman. Sakura knew her from the last mission; she remembered seeing her when Kakashi's team had arrived.

"I'll leave you here," Sakura heard the guard say, breaking her not so distant thoughts.

"Thank you," she said to him with a smile before walking out of the shade from the hallway and into the sun's warm light. And as she did, the woman got onto her feet, dropping her suitcase before turning to reveal her face.

"Hey, good morning! You're just in time!" Tenten exclaimed, beaming so brightly, Sakura believed it was genuine.

"Good morning…I take it that you're my instructor?"

"That's right!" the vampire replied, showing an array of white teeth once again as she shot Sakura another stunning smile, "But I was only appointed for today's session. Shall we begin?"

Sakura nodded and Tenten knelt beside her suitcase once more, pulling out something long. Then she placed the object, firmly in Sakura's hand and closed her fingers around its thin body.

When Tenten stepped back, Sakura shot her a questioning look, still holding the object just as it had been placed in her hands. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Can you identify what it is?" Tenten asked the puzzled new born.

Sakura brought the item closer to her face, examining it with her eyes as she ran her index finger along the length. The object's make felt familiar. She wrapped her fingers around the end of it and as soon as she did, Sakura recognized what she was holding, immediately.

"It's a sword…" she muttered.

"That's correct!" Tenten said excitedly, "Now, can you tell me what type of sword it is?"

Sakura unsheathed the weapon and closed her eyes before whirling the blade around with peculiar twists, avoiding any accidental self-inflicted cuts from the action. The sword required an ample amount of energy to whip around; and with each twist, it cut through the air at a long range. It was not the type of weapon she was accustomed to wielding…

"This sword's blade is long…unlike my wakazashi, so I think that this is…a katana," Sakura concluded.

"Nice! Once again, you're absolutely correct…" Tenten remarked in awe, "Here…catch!"

Sakura immediately dropped the now sheathed katana and narrowly caught the tossed object between her index and middle finger.

"It seems we have to work on your reflexes," Tenten noted before instructing, "Tell me what that is."

"A…kunai," Sakura responded almost immediately and Tenten threw another weapon at her.

The session continued like that for another hour until Sakura was familiar with all bladed weapons. Then Tenten took Sakura to the middle of the large field where they worked on her reflexes. Sakura was proficient at dodging Tenten's attacks when blindfolded; however when the same practice was done otherwise, Sakura seemed to loose focus and avoiding the fast approaching weapons became confusing and formidable.

On understanding the situation completely, Tenten decided to take a more simple approach; to take things step by step.

Tenten began by throwing only one kunai at Sakura who managed to dodge successfully. Then she doubled the numbers and eventually tripled them until Sakura put her advanced perception to good use and the exercise was no longer difficult or terrifying.

They continued for hours on end, past the time that a regular human could last. Then, in due course they slowly became tired and ending their session was more than necessary.

Unable to move anymore, they both surrendered their weights to the ground, covered in smooth turf, their bodies parallel to each other.

"I…must admit…you're a…fast learner," Tenten said to Sakura in between deep pants.

"Thanks," Sakura managed to get out and after a few more breaths she added, "I don't know about you…but…I'm _not_ walking back home…"

"Who said we were walking…"

And with that said, Tenten took out her small phone and contacted Kakashi…

* * *

When Sakura and Tenten arrived at the mansion, it was already dusk. The sun was almost no longer visible but left behind its hues of orange which had been rapidly melting away into shades of blue and purple. Tenten had already retreated to her room before saying her goodbyes and Sakura decided to do the same, thinking of a comforting warm bath.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Kakashi said, standing near the driver's side of his black Audi.

His concern was understandable. For all her life, Sakura lived under Kakashi's care and guidance. She had been his responsibility ever since he found her the night her parents died. They both developed a strong, sibling relationship and had both grown considerably fond of each other's company.

So, when Sakura made her first decision toward real independence – to stay at the organization's mansion like the other members – it was reasonable to her that Kakashi would want to ensure that she was comfortable with her choice.

"Yes. I'm fine with it. My feelings towards vampires are still…_unstable_…but I've thought about what Tsunade said to me when I first joined the organization. My job is to slay vampires…and that's the most important thing. It's my top priority, because when I do my job, I'll also be protecting the innocent, both the oblivious and the aware. And what's more, I'll also be protecting the people who matter to me the most. Everything else comes _second_ – money, who my colleagues are and to which races they belong – these things aren't worth the worry. I can't change the way the organization is run…so I shouldn't waste my time fretting about it…"

"You have grown a lot, Sakura…" Kakashi told Sakura, smiling under the mask that concealed most of his face.

"I should go," she said lastly, "I'm dying for a bath…"

After muttering a quick 'good evening', Sakura hurried into the large house to be greeted by the thick aroma of melted cheese and baked chicken along with mixtures of other foods that would make any _human's_ mouth water. Sakura felt no such desires for it.

"NARUTO! Put that back!" Sakura heard Ino shouting in the kitchen.

"But I'm _hungry_! Believe it!" she heard Naruto protest.

Sakura shook her head. It was in Naruto's character to do things that would annoy Ino to no end. Kiba almost had the same personality, but for some reason, Ino seemed to be more lenient with him.

"I said no!"

"Why not?"

"Because we have to wait on Sakura, you dumbass!"

"Oh…right…"

At Ino's last statement, Sakura stopped walking. Why had they been waiting for her when they all knew she could no longer enjoy human food?

She began walking again, this time with a little more speed despite her dreariness. And when she entered the dining room, everyone had already been seated…including Sasuke and his brother. Even Hinata and Tenten were there.

"Oh she's here!" Ino squealed, rising from her seat and making her way over to Sakura. "Come on…have a seat next to me…"

Sakura said nothing as she was guided to the table, one question still plaguing her mind. Why were the vampires at the table, ready to eat human food?

She kept her questions to herself, though as she sat at the large table, knowing that it would be rude to ask such a thing.

Once everyone had begun to eat, Ino, who had been sitting to Sakura's right, decided that now would be the best time for everyone to properly introduce themselves to Sakura. Surely she had already become acquainted, to some extent with the members who attended her school. But now, at least she knew what they looked like.

Without question, Sakura let herself indulge in the deliciously prepared dinner which consisted quiche and casseroles. Though she had no desire for what she ate, the scrumptious taste remained the same. The simple act of eating made her feel that nothing about her had changed; that she had not lost her identity…she was still the same Sakura.

Everyone had been so comfortable around each other as they talked and shared jokes. Even Sasuke seemed to let loose by tolerating Naruto's 'funny' remarks about him…though he did not laugh. He simply smirked and continued eating his small portion of casserole.

Suddenly Sakura understood why the vampires were having a human meal together with the humans. It was not the food they looked forward to, but the _company_ they shared. They were all like one big, warm family – something Sakura thought she had lost forever. But here she was, sitting at a table surrounded by chattering and laughter over an inviting dinner…

"Ino this was delicious," Temari complimented.

"Yeah! Believe it! I think I want more," Naruto added.

"There's more on the kitchen counter," Ino supplied, "Oh and I know it's getting late and all, but before you guys go off to bed – tomorrow's Italian Monday, so what will you guys like for dinner?"

"Chicken Parmesan…with spaghetti!" Kiba suggested and Ino agreed before anyone could voice their own opinions. Sakura had come to learn that the members had assigned each day of the week to a particular country's foods. On Mondays, Italian was served; on Tuesdays, they had Japanese; on Wednesdays they ate something originating from France; on Thursdays they enjoyed Spanish meals while Fridays were left for Lebanese cuisines and Saturdays they relished the flavors of Indian cuisine. Sunday meals – like today's one – were decided by Ino, since she did most of the cooking during the course of the week.

Sakura decided to clear the table while everyone busied themselves with other chores in the kitchen. Temari and Tenten had already left the table to clear the kitchen counter while Itachi packed away a few drinks into the refrigerator. Hinata was helping Ino wash the utensils that were used to make dinner.

Sasuke was still at the table, _seemingly_ listening to Naruto's rants about some Xbox 360 game.

When Sakura's hand became full with plates, she took them over to the kitchen counter for Hinata to wash, and returned to the table to collect the remaining ones. When she returned to the dining room in the next minute, Naruto was gone, leaving her alone…with Sasuke.

Sakura breathed in deeply before proceeding. She felt his unwavering stare on her as she cleared Naruto's eating area first. She felt on edge as she tried to hold the dishes firmly while keeping her eyes from falling upon his unreadable gaze.

Why did she feel this way? It was a foreign feeling…almost as though she was unconsciously trying to prevent herself from doing something she could not quite put her finger on. Ever since she returned from the mission Sakura felt that there was something dormant that would be suddenly be awakened whenever she was in Sasuke's presence.

"Are you…finished?" she asked him, keeping her eyes focused on his plate.

"Yes," he said simply, but he held his gaze.

For some unfathomable reason, Sakura thought that as she took his plate off the table, he would grab her wrist…

But in the end…it was _just_ a thought…

* * *

After a warm bath, Sakura had forgotten about the small bit of tension she experienced earlier in the dining room. Hinata's cousin, Neji had arrived earlier on to take her home. Ino informed Sakura that Hinata's intimate family, consisting of her sister and her father as well as her cousin Neji, were the only survivors of the Pureblooded Hyuuga Clan.

The night was still, except for the distant sounds of cars on the highways. She had slept peacefully on the previous night…but tonight was different.

She was told that she would feel the need for sleep, being a new born vampire, but it was quite the opposite at the moment. Even the faint, continuous sounds she would usually focus on to lull herself to sleep were not effective.

She sighed. It was going to be a long night, she thought, as she gazed up at the ceiling as her body rested on the soft mattress.

Suddenly, an idea came to her…

'_Azami…are you there?'_

She waited for an answer, keeping her mind clear from all thoughts.

But nothing came…

'_Did her soul make it back into my body?' _Sakura wondered, remembering the eerie encounter they both had with the unknown entity that called himself 'God', and many other names.

The idea was terrifying. Surely Sakura had only conversed with Azami once, but in that short time, said woman provided warmth; an assuring sense of comfort that was much needed. Sakura felt attached to her…just as her soul had also been attached to her body.

Sakura pushed the thought away as she rolled her body to her side and got off the bed. She thought some fresh air would be good.

But just as she made one step forward, Sakura's vision became dizzy and her knees began to weaken; so she allowed herself to fall back onto the bed, keeping a seated posture.

"God…what's wrong with me now?" she muttered to herself.

Then after a few minutes, she attempted to make her way outside once more…and was successful. She closed her bedroom door behind her with a soft 'click', and started down the hall quietly so no one would be awakened, pausing at Sasuke's room at the sound of Karin's soft moans.

Sakura's breath hitched on realizing the situation and an unknown, unpleasant sensation in her chest surfaced. For some reason she felt heatedly frustrate…and _betrayed_. But she was able to discard the feelings as quickly as they appeared…and she continued down the hallway and exited the mansion through the back door.

She was exposed to a wider variety of sounds from the many night creatures when she entered the gardens. She enjoyed the cricket's duet with the owl as her eyes explored the garden's beauty. And the faint sound of the water in the garden fountain was rather soothing to her ears.

When she sat on the high back metal garden bench, she became surrounded by almost a dozen fireflies, highlighting the grass, the trees, and the _flowers. _She adored the red roses just as she loved its splendid fragrance. She pondered on why they had been in bloom at the late hour, but did not see the harm in it.

The Moonflowers seemed to glisten in the moonlight with the diamonds of dew upon its white, silken petals. And the Casablanca Lily's hypnotic fragrance seemed to waft over the entire garden.

The place looked so _magical_, under the starry sky.

Sakura lay down on the bench, the cold metal giving a soothing feel against the bare skin of her legs and closed her eyes. Her thoughts were clear; her mind kept its focus on the noises that came from the night creatures. And with the help of the wind's cool, soft kisses on her skin…she fell asleep…

* * *

Sasuke was aware that Sakura had left her room. He had felt her chakra in the hallway, and even knew when she stopped at his door. Why did she? Had she needed something? Or perhaps she heard him and Karin during their late night endeavors?

Why did he _care_? He did not have to…

However, what bothered him more was the fact that Sakura had not returned to her room.

He got out of his bed, eyeing the light that emitted from the creasing beneath his bathroom door. Karin was still in the shower.

Still, without any care about the whining she would pester him with in the morning, Sasuke left his room, tracing Sakura's distant chakra signature. It led him straight into the gardens, just behind the mansion, to a soundly sleeping Sakura.

'_How foolish…' _Sasuke thought as he looked down at the woman. Sakura's actions had indeed been thoughtless. She failed to consider that it was unwise to wander without company in the dead of night. She failed to regard that she had been the Prophetic Child, who would obviously be sought out to be annihilated by Madara or his henchmen. And she _failed_ to understand that if she died before fulfilling the Prophecy, the _Uchiha Clan_ would never be avenged…

Sakura's stupidity angered him greatly, but he kept it in check.

He reached out to shake her awake, but stopped himself when he caught sight of the faint smile that adorned her soft features. Had she come out there because she could not sleep?

He denied the thought on remembering that to new born vampires, sleep was something that came naturally at night…just as it used to when they were humans. Sakura's vampire abilities could not have possibly developed faster than the average new born…

Sasuke did not bother to wake the woman anymore. But neither was he leaving her unguarded. He made his way over to the other garden bench opposite Sakura's and sat.

His eyes fell on Sakura's sleeping form once more…and stayed there…for _quite_ some time…

* * *

The rays of sunlight felt nice on her cool skin. Through her eyelids, she saw shades of light orange; and when her eyes became wide open they were met with a bright sky, the sun illuminating the clouds to give them a heavenly outline.

The sky had given her a peaceful greeting, but as the saying goes, 'all good things must come to an end…'

As she turned her body on the bench's wide surface, she was met with the sight of a being that startled her for a second. He was clothed in a black lounge pants with a thin black vest to cover his well-toned, pale upper body.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him boldly as she got off the bench, massaging her temple as she did. Her vision was hazy again and by now, Sakura understood why.

"You need to feed. Why didn't you come to me earlier, yesterday?"

"You didn't answer my _question_," she stated, still rubbing her head.

"I'm _not_ obligated to answer to you," he countered.

"Then neither am I," Sakura said flatly.

Sasuke grunted only loud enough to hear himself. There were many things he was compelled to do for his mate – that was the core rule of the bond. But answering her questions was not one of those things.

"Let's go inside before the others start waking up and get worried when they find that you're missing," Sasuke said to her in his signature monotonous voice.

Sakura did not argue with him there, since he made sense. Ino would definitely be upset if she thought something happened to her. Then word would pass on to Kakashi who would more than likely arrive with an entire search party on the ready.

"You need to feed," Sasuke repeated when they both reached the hallway that led to the bedrooms.

"I heard you the first time," Sakura responded, annoyed, "But no tha –"

Suddenly being pinned to the wall stopped her in mid-sentence.

His hands were firmly clutching her shoulders as he held her against the wall. Their faces were millimeters apart with their noses almost touching.

"It wasn't a request, Sakura…"

When he spoke, his breath felt hot on her lips and she tried desperately to keep them pursed together.

"Do it, _now_," he ordered in a low, rough tone.

He was not giving her much of a choice. And so, without further protest, Sakura bent her head forward to base of his neck and readied her fangs before puncturing the male's pale skin.

She moaned at the savory taste of his blood; the blood that never made her regret her actions; the blood she would silently crave whenever her thirst began to surface.

Her body moved on its own as she pressed her hips to his in a seductive manner, the area between her legs beginning to throb. And she could feel the moisture becoming present there as it always had during every feeding session.

The scary thing was Sasuke did nothing to stop her. Perhaps it was because, he did not need to since she never let herself go too far; her _mind_ never tolerated it.

Her head was so intoxicated that she did not realize Sasuke's body had at some time, been pushed against hers and his right hand was no longer gripping her shoulder but instead roaming over the surface of the back of her lower body.

The urge to capture her lips in his was overpowering, but Sasuke was an Uchiha and being that, he knew how to expertly contain himself especially when he was aware that the experienced feelings were merely due to the bond.

Once Sakura withdrew, Sasuke released her and without a single word from either vampire Sakura stormed off into her bedroom, her face entirely flushed…

* * *

For the rest of the week, Sakura continued her training. For every day of the week, she would be assigned to a different instructor. So far she had sessions with Kakashi, Shikamaru, Temari and Tenten to develop her combat skills. For recognition of physical appearances, Sakura usually met with Kurenai Yuhi, Ino and even Tsunade from time to time.

During those sessions, she learnt about various colors, household items, hospital equipment, clothing and fashion. She was even being taught how to read and write. Being as old as she was, Sakura's brain had been developed enough to comprehend everything rather quickly.

Sakura had agreed to be home tutored for some time until Tsunade deemed the time right for her to return to school. For now, during the week days, on evenings, Sakura met with a different subject teacher from the school to be taught what she had been missing.

On the following Sunday, Sakura waited patiently for Tenten to arrive at the training grounds. She had been late by half an hour to be precise.

Sakura sat, facing the entrance so that she would know of her instructor's arrival; however another fifteen minutes passed and she was still alone. But just as she had begun to wonder about anything, two figures were seen entering through the gates.

"Sorry, we're late, Sakura," Kakashi apologized. His body concealed the other person's. "Tsunade needed Tenten for a mission, so today you'll have a replacement instructor."

"Awesome!" Sakura remarked, beaming, "I enjoy training with you!"

"_He's not_ your instructor for today," said a cold, deadpanning voice she knew all to well.

Her smile had faded completely as the male stepped out from behind Kakashi, the signature devilish smirk plastered across his pale, handsome face. He looked clothed for battle, with his black combat boots and cargo pants of the same color. Covering his upper fine, upper body was a semi-fitted, dark grey t-shirt.

At the sight of him, Sakura felt a whirlwind in her stomach, spinning rapidly in the hollowness within her. Was it fear? No. It was something akin to…_excitement_. But why was that? She could not seem to find the answer to that question; she could not see the logic in her feeling…

"This is even _better_," Sakura spoke before putting any thought to what she said firstly.

"Why so?" Sasuke asked, now walking further into the field to be at a closer combat range to her.

"Because I'll get to use the full extent of my strength…"

"Hn…"

They said nothing after that. Both were at the center of the field and neither of them moved an inch. Fierce midnight green focused intently upon cold charcoal black.

Then suddenly, whisked dust replaced the charcoal black and before she knew it, Sasuke had been to her near right, the sword Kusanagi in his hand. But as the blade inched closer to her face, Sakura bent her body backwards, enough to avoid the blow. And she wasted no time in drawing her own katana, simultaneously swinging at his legs.

Their swords clashed as they parried each other's attacks and continued to dodge by other means. By the feel of his blade against hers, Sakura became aware that Sasuke had been exerting a great amount of strength. He was not holding back…

During all of this, Sakura also noticed the sudden change in Sasuke's eye color. The onyx had completely disappeared, only to be replaced by an unusual crimson…like the color of _blood_.

'_The Sharingan Eye,' _Sakura recalled mentally as she sidestepped one of his slashes, _'that's right…the Uchiha were well known for it. With the Sharingan Eye, the user has the ability to predict his opponent's moves…as well as copy them…'_

This was not good. Not in the slightest. How was she supposed land a single blow when he could see her every move before she got too far with it?

'_Focus. Don't be reckless,' _she cautioned herself inwardly.

"Hn…is _this_ all you've got?" Sasuke taunted, taking a huge leap a few meters backwards. Though he provoked, her, Sasuke silently acknowledged Sakura's strength. During their combat, he was able to assess her physical skills. She had gotten strong enough that he _actually_ needed his Sharingan to prevent himself from being scarred.

"_Tch," _Sakura whispered through gritted teeth.

Just then, Sasuke began moving his hands swiftly, seeming to be creating queer hand signs with all his fingers. She had never encountered anyone who did such a thing and wondered what they were about. He brought his fingers to his lips.

Then out of his lips, emerged winds of fiery flames. Flames just like the ones that burnt her house to ashes…eight years ago.

The approaching heat felt horrifically familiar as well as the crackling of the flames as it continued to draw nearer. Sakura was petrified by the painful memories of her mother's cries, her father's last goodbyes, Hana's screams…and falling of wood as they were enveloped into the raging flames.

"You _idiot_!"

Sasuke's rough insult brought her back to actuality and soon her eyes saw the ball of flames, inches away from her being. It seemed that currently reality was just as terrifying as the memories…

Then out of nowhere, Sasuke appeared beside her, pushing her body out of the fire's path. They both landed a few meters across the field, Sasuke's arms tightly around her form as they rolled in the dust and grass. And when they came to a halt, he released her and glared at her with immense anger.

"What the _fuck_ was _that_?" he asked her, outraged, his hard gaze still fixed upon her. "If I hadn't realized that you were _stupid_ enough to not even _attempt_ to dodge, your life would've been gone with the flames!"

"Are you even listening to me?" he spat on noticing that Sakura had not even been looking at him. It took a moment to see that she in fact looked…_traumatized_.

"Stop it, Sasuke. That's enough," Kakashi commanded the vampire. "I think this should be the end of her training session…for today," Kakashi said to him as he helped Sakura onto her feet.

The girl's eyes had still been partially widened, as though in shock and no sound was emitted from her now trembling lips…

* * *

Sakura placed her tea cup on the windowsill as her eyes traveled across the road and fell upon the people walking on the sidewalk. She could hear them laughing and conversing with each other. In one of the neighbor's yards, there was a little white Maltese, barking.

She closed her eyes for a moment and recalled that her neighborhood had been similar, in her home city of Spokane, where she lived with her parents. It _sounded_ so similar...to old community called 'Lincoln Heights'.

No matter how much she wanted to linger in the memory, the knock at her door forced Sakura to open her eyes.

"It's me," she heard Kakashi say from the other side of her bedroom door, "May I come in?"

"Sure…"

He closed the door softly on his way in and smiled under his mask as he looked at her. She always knew when he did from the look in his right eye – the _only_ eye he revealed to _anyone_. Even before, in her blinded state, she could tell from the slight tenderness his voice held.

"I'm sorry," he began, "I should have warned Sasuke about using that technique earlier…"

"It's fine…what was that anyway?"

"It's called the 'Fireball Jutsu'. The Uchiha Clan is well known for being able to manipulate the element of fire," Kakashi explained.

Sakura nodded upon understanding.

"Anyway…" he said and extended his hand to her, holding what appeared to be a wide sheet of paper. "The night I found you…before I found out you were blind, I picked this up…thinking that you'd want it as a memento..."

Sakura looked at the picture in her hand. It was still in its wooden frame, the edges of which had been burnt enough to become charred. But the picture remained unharmed from the violent flames that claimed the lives of her dear ones.

Her eyes fell upon the figures standing together in the photograph. It was the photographic memory of a family of three…

The adult woman in the photo was standing near a man to her right. The lady's long hair possessed a color akin to Amaranth Pink and her eyes were cornflower blue, possessing a charismatic stare. The man beside her had short, spiky, Ash-brown hair with dark, emerald eyes; and a face of fine, physical architecture.

In front of them both stood a short, chubby-faced but familiar little girl with short Rose-pink hair that suited her well with her fair skin and emerald eyes.

"This is…me with…my Mom and Dad," Sakura muttered in recognition as she brushed over the photograph with her fingers, before taking it out of the frame.

She looked up at Kakashi.

After her parent's death, Kakashi adopted her and they moved to one of his homes situated in Cle Elum. The area there was quiet enough to train herself to move around without the aid of anyone or any locator devices.

"Thank you," she said to him, almost in a whisper as she had been fighting the persistent sobs in her throat and the threatening tears under her lids.

"I figured now would be the appropriate time to give it to you," he replied, ruffling her pink hair.

"The anniversary is in two weeks," she remembered.

"Yes," Kakashi responded, "I've already made arrangements for you to return to Spokane just in time to visit your parents…and Hana…"

"Thank you," she said once more, clutching the picture to her chest.

Sakura never celebrated her birthday. How could she when that was the day she had lost what mattered to her the most? There was nothing worth celebrating…only mourning…

But this time she knew that facing her deceased parents and friend would be hard. Because this time, she would do so as a different being – as the thing responsible for their deaths; and she knew she would feel that way whether she was still human...

Because it was her fault that she had been the Prophetic Child; it was her fault that fate severed all of her bonds so that she would end up where she had presently been.

It was _all her fault_…

So she cursed herself, day by day, for being born to the innocent couple…

She cursed herself for befriending the joyous and warm little girl at school…

She cursed herself so _bitterly_ that she could almost taste it at the back of her throat…

* * *

**A/N: Finally, I decided to bring the chapter to a close. I was so into it that I completely forgot where I was supposed to end it...but hey, at least you got more! I'm not sure when the next update is going to be since my cat is going to have a surgery :(**

**But I know that I won't update until I get at least three chapters up for my other story.**

**I would greatly appreciate at least ten reviews with your opinions, though. And I thank everyone who read the story so far and subscribed.**

**If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! I'll be happy to answer them personally :)**

**Oh and has anyone read the manga lately? It's kind of weird how I get emotional when Itachi's in it. XD**

**And I hope you didn't mind the errors. I'll make it error-free as soon as I get the chance, I promise.  
**

**-IzWinchesterDevil.  
**


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Ten: Anniversary of a Birth and Death of Many**

Sakura loved washing the dishes alone in the kitchen. It was not that she hated anyone's company because in fact, she enjoyed being around most of her colleagues very much. Sakura appreciated her time away from the others as much as she liked it; the sole reason being that she was able to let her thoughts wander. She loved how she could do that now without suffering from a mental disorder. Usually Ino would help her do the dishes, but Sakura decided to take on the task alone for the night after learning of Ino's Chemistry examination for which she needed to study.

While she rinsed every cup and plate, Sakura's mind pondered about the day that marked eight years since she lost her parents and friend to the ominous race of vampires – the gluttons for havoc. The anniversary of their deaths was the only thing she observed. To Sakura, her birthday became minimized to something she would consider trivial, since that night.

Her thoughts took the pattern of a vast current, drifting from one to the next as soon as they came to mind. And that was how she went from being deep in thought about her first encounter with vampires on the night her parents died, to the peculiar markings on her stomach. The marks did not seem important enough to pester Kakashi about as it could have simply been a birthmark. But, no matter how hard Sakura tried to convince herself that it was, her mind was stubborn; and in the end she failed to understand how a birthmark could seem to be so perfectly inked to shape something so symbolic.

After her evening baths, Sakura would find herself observing the unusual, but completely natural tattoo-like pattern that she made out to be a dragon. The other circular symbol, she could not quite decipher. At times, such as the present, she would successfully convince herself that it was the meaningless birthmark she thought it was; and there were days her mind would be obstinate, thinking otherwise.

The sudden, firm knocks at the front door broke her out of her roller-coaster of thoughts. Wondering who could possibly be visiting at such a late hour, Sakura turned the faucet off and put the washcloth on the kitchen counter; and with a drying cloth in hand, she made her way to the front door.

To her honest surprise, Sakura was met face to face with Tsunade upon answering the door. Nonetheless she discarded the feeling and greeted the woman warmly.

"Would you like to come in?" Sakura asked and stepped aside to allow for Tsunade's entrance.

"Yes, thank you," Tsunade answered, "And I've brought another guest with me…"

Moving aside, Tsunade revealed the presence of an old woman, sitting in a wheel chair. Sakura did not recognize the lady, but smiled at her, even so. She figured that the elder woman was someone only known to the rest of the organization's members residing in the mansion.

"Would you like to have anything?" Sakura asked as she led both women into the kitchen.

"No…but thank you. Our meeting will be short," Tsunade replied politely before taking a seat at the counter located at the center of the kitchen.

"Okay. Then, shall I call the others?" Sakura suggested.

"No need," the elder woman spoke this time, "Tsunade has already contacted the young Uchiha; and you are already present."

Sakura knew that voice. Behind the creakiness of her voice, there was something utterly familiar about the way she spoke.

"Um…I don't mean to sound rude, but who are you?" she decided to ask the woman directly.

Chuckling before giving a response, the woman replied, "I'm not surprised that you asked Sakura, dear."

"Sakura, this is Yumi Komagata, the Oracle you had met earlier," Tsunade supplied before acknowledging Sasuke's arrival into the kitchen.

To say that she was simply shocked would have been an understatement. When Sakura met Yumi, she recalled a young woman by the sound of her voice. How could any person age in such a short space of time?

"I don't understand…You were so young when I first met you…"

"Child, have you forgotten?" Yumi said to the female vampire, her tone stern even with the elderly voice, "I was never young to begin with. After revealing the Prophecy to you, my real age began to catch up on me and thankfully it is almost time for me to leave this world. I have come here to see you for what I believe, may be the last time. I requested to see both you and Sasuke because I have a few words to say to you."

By now Sasuke had already been seated at the counter. Sakura took one quick glance at the male, meeting his eyes for a short moment. Why did he look as though he had been staring at her since he entered the room?

Sakura always felt on edge every time he did that. Sometimes it made her sick to the stomach and in other times, it was just plainly vexing. She looked away before Yumi could begin to speak, but still felt his gaze at the back of her head, unmoved and intent.

When Yumi took her hand in hers, Sakura managed to forget about the uneasiness that always accompanied Sasuke's presence.

"Sakura," she began, "when you first stepped into my room at the asylum, I felt as though you changed the atmosphere with a force of some sort. Then, in a moment I realized what that force was – your _determination_. It was your unwavering determination – to know the truth; to find the missing pieces and complete the puzzle – that lifted the atmosphere to such a height. This quality; this _fire, _is something I wish you would never allow to be extinguished."

"Sakura, I've foreseen the many trials and tribulations you'll face in the upcoming days, months…and maybe even years…but when ever you find yourself in terrible situations that involve the people you hold dear, _trust in your heart_. Remember, there's _always_ a solution to _any _problem. You just need to have faith."

Yumi paused for a brief moment, releasing Sakura's hands and her right palm against the vampire's cheek – a gesture that brought the feeling of warmth and a sense of comfort she had not experienced in quite some time.

"Due to certain…_restraints_…I cannot tell you everything straightforwardly. However, I will tell you that you should be careful of whom you trust, for the knife of betrayal cuts deep," Yumi concluded and suddenly the warmth was gone.

Yumi's words were genuinely advisory, though that fact did nothing to make her forget how grave they sounded. It was certainly a serious warning Sakura would ponder about…and take to heart, especially since it seemed to have pulled her back to reality.

For the past few days, Sakura slowly and unconsciously began to trust everyone; even the vampires, to some extent. Yumi's warning had restored the complete awareness Sakura once had before she began working for the organization.

Yumi removed her frail hand from the surface of Sakura's pale, cool skin and turned to Sasuke.

"Sasuke Uchiha…" she began with a smile gracing her old, nevertheless elegant face, "Your mother and I knew each other for a short time, however I'm certain that she'd be entirely proud of your decisions, had she been alive today."

Sasuke remained silent, however the fact that he looked away was evidence enough for Sakura to conclude that his mother was a somewhat touchy topic. And that was expected, considering the circumstances under which she died.

"But I want you to always keep in mind, the last thing I said to you on the day I revealed the Prophecy. The fact that a prophecy has been made, means that destinies have been decided by a powerful and divine being. Whatever happens in the future, you must will yourself to accept it. That is all I have to tell you."

By now Sasuke's gaze had been fixed upon Yumi's once again, but this time it was stern with a tinge of confusion that would not have been noted without a second glance.

"Sakura," Tsunade spoke this time, "before it slips my mind, I just wanted to inform you that your flight to Spokane leaves promptly at 5:00a.m on Wednesday."

Sakura gave the older woman a quick nod in response. Originally, Tsunade intended to arrange for her and Kakashi to travel to her hometown for her parent and friend's death anniversaries using the organization's private jet, however Sakura refused the arrangement. She wanted to experience travelling by plane as an ordinary person would, because the idea of being treated like a politician seemed uncomfortable to her.

Shortly, after some time, Sakura escorted the two female guests to the door and when they were gone, she returned to the kitchen, silently hoping that Sasuke had left. But as the saying goes: one should never let their hopes up. Leaning on the kitchen counter, Sasuke stood with that signature impassive look on his face with his hands in the pockets of his black sweatpants.

Inwardly, she huffed, and walked past him without making any eye contact. She decided that she would not waste her time by approaching him since that usually resulted in arguments and anger that were difficult to get over. If there was something that was needed to be said, he would speak.

Sakura turned the faucet on to continue washing the dishes when he finally spoke, breaking the unpleasant silence.

"How long will you be gone for?"

It was a question. And it made the atmosphere all the more unnerving.

Sakura could already feel the pressure building inside her. Why was this of any concern to him? Who was he to enquire about her length of future absence? Though these question arose in her head, Sakura simply responded, "A week."

Rinsing the glass cup under the water, she awaited his response.

"You're going to _waste_ an entire week, pointlessly grieving and reminiscing while there are many skills you lack in order to defeat Madara?"

The sound of shattering glass echoed throughout the kitchen and the scent of blood completely flooded his nostrils almost immediately.

"Wasting time? You know, I actually thought that _you_ of all people would understand what it feels like to lose both parents to the likes of worthless vampires! But _clearly_ I was wrong!"

Sakura did not care that her right hand was being covered in blood though it had already begun to heal. And she was either also careless or mindless of the fact that the enticing and fresh smell gave rise to a ravenous thirst in Sasuke's throat. Still, he kept his eyes off the crimson wine that now coated the entire surface of her palm, and clenched his hands into tight fists, secured within his pockets and remained silent.

But what Sakura shouted to him next, made him feel something he had not in _decades_…

"And I _don't_ need to be reminded about what I'm responsible for, dammit!"

And before he could even formulate an indirect apology, she had already stormed out of the kitchen.

The guilt was not overbearing, but it _had_ resurfaced…

* * *

Sakura did not think she would end up crying, especially in front of Sasuke, out of all persons in the mansion. What did she expect from Sasuke? Pity? She berated herself for thinking that the cold-hearted Pureblood whose own race murdered her loved ones, would understand the importance of her upcoming trip to Spokane. It was certainly an absurd idea.

She had not noticed the cut she had gotten from crushing the glass ware until she sniffled, and removed a shard before the wound had completely healed.

Sakura got up from her bed and made her way into her bathroom where she washed away the bloodstains on her hand.

'_He's wrong about what he said…' _she thought to herself as she began to soap her hands, _'I'm not going there to grieve. I'm going there for something far more important; something he would never understan; because to him, it would be considered meaningless.'_

But at the back of her mind she knew he was right about one thing – it would be disadvantageous to the organization to go a week without advancing her skills…

* * *

On her second day in Spokane, after much rest, Sakura was more than ready for some training. And Kakashi could not agree more. The field with which they were provided was not as large as the one back in Seattle, but it was enough.

The weather was ideal for the technique she wanted to challenge.

"Can you do that fire technique the Uchihas use?" she asked Kakashi.

She understood what had to be done…

"Yes…"

If all Uchihas used a fire technique, then Madara would; which made one thing certain…

"I want you to use every possible variation of that technique, Kakashi…"

She needed to overcome the fear she had developed eight years ago…

* * *

On the day that marked eight years since her parents' death, Sakura visited one of the most famous cemeteries in her small hometown. It was the oldest one with exceptional, well-crafted headstones. She brushed her hand along the ceramic serpentine top stone and the engravings that spelt the names of the buried husband and wife, just as she did in the years before. However this time she was able to read the engravings…

"_In memory of two souls, bounded by fate,  
And a love stronger than no other…_

_Aya Haruno – a devoted wife and mother (1974-2003)…_

_Hitoshi Haruno – a loving husband and father (1968-2003)…_

…_A love that manifested into the form of another dear soul – their beautiful daughter…_

_Sakura Haruno (1995-2003)…_

_Their memories are forever enshrined in our hearts…"_

Sakura stared at the last part of the epitaph, wide-eyed, before reading it about five times again to assure herself that what she saw was real.

Everyone thought she, just like her parents, had perished among the flames…

She did not know whether to consider that advantageous or hurtful but after a quick run through of her present situation, she guessed the former would be better. This way, her other family members would not get caught up in the dangers that became existent since the day the Prophecy had been revealed. The only relatives that she knew about were her grandmother on her mother's side and her mother's sister. Her father had no siblings and both of his parents died a long time ago, just before he married her mother.

"Eight years has gone by so quickly," Sakura began, looking at the headstone, "Before, I didn't understand why all of this happened. Everything occurred all at the same time, shocking me. It was bizarre. And now that I know who I really am, I realize that your passing was my entire fault. And I know that I don't deserve your forgiveness; I'd rather…live on without forgiveness…as my punishment…"

Her tone became unsteady as she tried to suppress the tears, the back of her throat becoming sore.

"I've become a vampire – the thing I detest with all my soul because they were the ones who took you away from me. But that was until I came to understand that the core reason for your deaths was me. So now, I accept my unwanted change from human to monster…as part of my punishment. In fact, for being the reason you died…I think…I actually _am_ a monster. I turned out to be what I really was along…"

"I know an apology can't bring you back…and I'm not going to ask you to accept that kind of confession. But, I _will_ avenge your deaths, Aya, Hitoshi and Hana. I _won't_ let your deaths go in vain and I _will_ defeat Madara, even if it costs me _my life_…_I swear_ on your memories…"

And then she could not hold them back, the tears. They came flowing like water down a mountain…

"I swear…on your _precious_, _precious_ memories…"

Then falling before the gravestone, she sobbed uncontrollably with her head in her hands.

_Sorrow_. Sorrow was the feeling she had learnt to feel on this very same day eight years ago; and it was the same feeling she had learnt to forget in a few days after. But today, that sorrow which had been dormant for all this time had now awaken from its long slumber. She had never shed a single tear whenever she visited her parents' grave in the past. And she never thought it would have happened ever again.

In fact, the emotions she felt from the _moment_ she entered the cemetery were utterly different from her previous visits. She felt alone; lost…

It did not take long for Sakura to pull herself together, bit by bit. But it was then she decided that whether or not she survived the predicted battle against Madara, this was definitely her last visit…

* * *

He ignored the fact the he could not conclude what had possessed him to secretly take the trip to Spokane as well; however his inexplicable decision held within it, some form of advantage. Although Kakashi had accompanied her on the trip, Sasuke figured that he would leave her alone at the cemetery. And since the day he dropped them off at the airport, Sasuke felt a strong chakra signature; one that was too strong to be human.

Sakura had been so consumed by her guilt and sorrow that she had forgotten all about being mindful of her surroundings. She failed to realize that she was being watched by someone other than himself. He was relieved when Sakura recovered from her emotional toll and walked out of the cemetery safely. But as soon as she did, the other chakra signature disappeared completely…and no one else was seen leaving the compound.

'_Someone's following her,' _he concluded. And whoever it was, they were rather professional. Was it Madara himself? No. Sasuke had too many encounters with him before, to be unfamiliar with the older Uchiha's chakra signature.

Although Kakashi had been with Sakura at the lodge in which they resided during their short stay, Sasuke decided to loiter around somewhere close by.

That night, he became annoyed when he saw that Sakura went to bed with her window ajar.

Strangely he felt the urge to get closer to her; close enough so that he could ward away the dangers that seemed to just be drawing nearer and nearer to her.

Soon enough, he found himself on the rooftop; just above her bedroom…close enough to be ready for an attack, and distant enough to protect her from himself. As he gazed into the night's black sky, dotted with asters, forming the many constellations, he felt it. Though, bathed in cool breeze, he felt it approaching; a period he knew he would loathe until the very end of this lifetime, especially now that he was bound to a supposed mate – the period where lustful cravings would become stronger, accompanied with the insane urges to impregnate his mate…

* * *

When Sakura and Kakashi returned to Seattle, no one was at the mansion to greet them. Had it been during the day time, it would have been understandable; but it was nearly eleven at night; not to mention that it was also a school night.

"Where do you think everyone went?" she asked Kakashi as they explored the empty house, in case anyone had remained behind.

"I'm not sure, but I'll wait with you until someone arrives," he replied. She found it strange that he did not contact Tsunade to enquire if there had been an emergency. It was highly uncharacteristic of him.

"You seem to –" she began but stopped at the sound of the main door being opened.

Then one by one everyone entered, chattering; and when they saw her, each person's usual expression turned somewhat surprised. Especially Ino's, whose had seemed to have stood out more than the others.

"O-oh…hello Sakura…" she said in a deflated tone before looking at the others, "I see you're back…"

"Yes…what's going on Ino?" Sakura questioned sternly, not liking the feeling she was getting from everyone. It was almost as though she was unwanted here.

Ino sighed before answering.

"Well, I guess it's no use hiding it now is it…" She glanced at the members behind and beside her before shuffling through some things in one of the shopping bags she was carrying. Then she handed a rectangular box wrapped in pink gift paper.

"What's this?" Sakura asked while further examining the exterior of the wrapped box.

"Your birthday gift from _me_!" Ino answered almost in a sing-song tone. "We all went out to buy you late birthday gifts after deciding that we'd have a surprise party for you at the last minute. _But_ as you can see, you beat us to it on arriving back home…so…"

"Thanks, everyone, but I don't celebrate my birthday anymore," Sakura replied seriously.

"What are you? A Jehovah Witness?" Ino said to the newborn vampire, her face becoming equally serious, "Honestly, the way you think of yourself _really_ pisses me off."

That caught Sakura by surprise, so much that she was unable to utter a word in response.

Ino took advantage of that and continued.

"I hate that you believe you're birth isn't worth celebrating. Just _drop it_, okay? Because it's _stupid_. I understand that because your parents passed away on your birthday, you find it inappropriate to celebrate it. Fine, I get it, but have you ever stopped to think that maybe your parents would want you to cherish your birth as much as they did?"

"I highly doubt they'd be cherishing it now that they know I'm the one who's responsible for their deaths!" Sakura disagreed.

"You _don't_ know that!" Ino shouted, taking a step toward Sakura. The cerulean color of her eyes that usually reminded Sakura of calm ocean waters was now a raging sea storm.

"But if you think that way, then fine! However you should consider that you have friends who appreciate your presence a lot more than you do. And because we love you, we will celebrate your birthday. Because Sakura, no one is promised a tomorrow. So please, allow us to treasure your birth because if it may not seem something special to you, it means something to us."

Sakura released a heavy sigh after a long moment of silence and kept her focus upon the tiled floor.

After a considerable amount of thought she decided that the best way to get out of this situation was to just let Ino and the others have their way. After all, the celebration was not a hardcore one that involved alcohol and any sort of repulsive behavior.

"Fine," Sakura consented to them and added that she was going to take a bath.

* * *

Sakura spent quite some time in the tub, reminiscing on her little argument she had with Ino and the events that occurred before her arrival back in Seattle. Kakashi had taught her to overcome her fear of the fire techniques that belonged to Sasuke and Itachi's clan, but she was not certain that she would be fearless of fire, should she encounter a building being engulfed in flames. Such an encounter was highly possible, but she hoped with all her soul that she would never have to face one.

She avoided thoughts on her parents with much effort and searched for anything to distract her from them.

Through the parting of soap bubbles on the water's surface, the tattoo-like birthmark came into view. Though she had assumed it was a birthmark, once again she began doubting it. Remembering the birthmarks she had 'Googled' earlier on the plane, she found that hers was perfectly shaped into the distinct resemblance to a dragon. The other mark, which had been detached from the dragon-like one, was still unrecognizable.

The sudden sound of laughter from downstairs snapped her out of her thoughts and reminded her that the others were expecting her.

Carefully she exited the comforting warmth that was present in the tub, gathered her belongings and retreated to her bedroom which was joined to her bathroom…

* * *

After pulling on a pair of skinny jeans and gray T-shirt, Sakura met the other mansion occupants in the family lounge where cake and a choice of apple cider or ginger ale were served. Ino had also whipped up some delicious, easy-to-eat delights like tacos and pizza slices.

Before they set up a movie, Sakura received gifts from everyone, excluding Temari, Gaara, Kankuro, Itachi and Sasuke.

What irked Sakura the most was that she had realized Sasuke's absence before the others. Ino informed her that he and his brother had been sent on separate missions while Temari and her siblings were at their father's mansion for the night because of a family reunion.

Neji congratulated her before taking his leave. His action was understandable as it befitted his personality. However he left Hinata with them, who declared that she would be spending the night.

The movie was Ino's choice since Sakura did not know of any good ones due to her previous blindness. It was called 'Letters to Juliet' and though Sakura never bothered with romance stories, this one seemed to be a bit intriguing. The movie was set in Italy, which, by the looks of the scenes in the movie, was a beautiful place.

Approximately thirty minutes into the movie, Kiba and Naruto had fallen asleep. That had been expected since the movie was unquestionably not their type.

And it was just around then that Sakura began to feel a familiar, but not appreciated presence. It was one that raised the pores on her skin and hairs at the back of her neck, despite the fact that she already possessed a low body temperature.

The chill was electrifying, just like the ones she would feel whenever she had been within _meters_ of none other than Sasuke Uchiha.

If he had been close, _why_ was she able to _feel him_? And had he not been on a mission?

She felt her stomach do a somersault…

Sakura found herself glancing around the dark room that was occasionally illuminated by the scenes on the television screen. Why did it seem to her as though she had been anticipating his return?

"Is something wrong, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"Err…no," she responded and refocused on the television screen.

Then suddenly, the presence was gone…as though it had never existed.

Maybe she had been imagining it. But she was certain of one thing; something she detested. At the back of mind, it was almost as though she _wanted_ Sasuke to be there. It was the strangest feeling. She had experienced it out of the blue.

Thrusting aside the feeling and thought, Sakura concentrated on the movie with hopes of distracting herself from what had just crept into her mind…

* * *

By the time the movie was over, Itachi had returned home from his mission. And as soon as he had taken a shower, he left to give his report to Tsunade at the hospital; and once again Sakura unconsciously began to wonder if Sasuke would suddenly appear from his mission as well.

Shrugging off the thought for a second time, she and Ino carried all her gifts to her room and placed them on her desk.

"Thanks Ino," Sakura said when Ino turned to her and smiled. "I appreciate what you did for me today and I'm sorry for the way I behaved earlier."

"That's alright, honey. You mean a lot to us so the pleasure was all mine," Ino chirped.

Her smile was contagious. Sakura could hardly find anything that would make her smile in the days that went by, but the way Ino's face just seemed to radiate light whenever she did, made her do the same, unthinkingly.

"I going to bed now," Ino said with a yawn, "Good night."

"Good night."

When Ino left, Sakura shut the door behind her and yawned. Her body ached, but she was not tired. Her eyes were _nowhere_ _near_ tired. So, she just let her body fall back onto the mattress, expecting to be welcomed by its soft caress; however what she found was quite the opposite.

Instead, she was met with the feel of a slightly sharp object, pressed against her upper back, through the fabric of her T-shirt. Quickly, she lifted her body off the surface and turned around to locate the object.

It was a black box.

Why had she not noticed it there when she entered the room? It certainly was not there when she arrived back at the mansion, or else she would have spotted it lying on the bed. Had Ino brought it up along with the other gifts?

Sakura took the box and set it on her lap, removed the lid and peered in.

The white rose stood out as it laid in the darkness of the interior of the box. It was beautifully white; the perfect description of elegance and purity. She was not sure what the person whom it was from intended it to mean, though.

She lifted the rose to her face and took in its scent and immediately she felt a relaxing sensation warming her cold body.

She looked into the box once more to find a picture in a frame.

After a careful glance, she saw that the picture was none other than the one Kakashi had saved for her – the photograph of her with her parents before they died.

A smile graced her face as she took up the photo which was encased in the frame that looked like an antique Victorian one that was from the early nineteenth century, judging from the thin, high outer edges and deep coves. Her eyes then fell upon the white piece of folded paper that still resided within the black box.

Upon unfolding it, she saw the beautiful calligraphy of kanji, written vertically on the crisp piece of parchment.

申  
し  
訳  
あ  
り  
ま  
せ  
ん  
で  
し  
た

Neither could Sakura comprehend what the kanji symbols meant, nor could she begin to suggest to herself who the sender of this gift was.

Earlier she had thought it was Kakashi, since he was the only one who knew of the picture. However it seemed unlikely of him to present her with a rose and words written in kanji, especially since he knew she could not understand it. Kakashi was never one to beat around the bush or send encoded messages unless he did not want anyone else to interpret it.

Sakura remained frozen in thought and fear. The fact that someone else knew about the photograph gave her the impression that she had been spied on. She felt insecure. And now, the rose that she had been admiring was no longer in her grasp, but on the tiled, cold floor of her bedroom. It came to her that the rose may have meant something _far more_ than elegance and purity.

Something…_dreadful_…

* * *

**A/N: Wow. I know. It's been AGES. Wait, wait! Don't start throwing those tomatoes just yet!**

Again, I have to apologize for taking so long with this update. I was so busy with college stuff and my cat (who greatly appreciates your well wishes, I'm sure), that I had VERY limited time to work on this. I hope you guys understand.

I CANNOT promise when the next update will be, but I will work on it and try to get it up before the end of this year. If I don't, well then you'll know that I've been eaten alive by my Advanced Chemistry text. :D

**~~~~~~  
Question and Answers (Remember, if you have any questions, **_**ask away**_**. I'll answer as much as I can (I have to be careful not to reveal the plot)):**

**Q: You know this story is a mix up of a BIT of Vampire Knight, right? So can you mix in some Rosario + Vampire?  
A: You may find that I have a little of 'Vampire Knight' in this story, but that's ONLY the CONCEPT of vampires. Before I ever read/saw 'Vampire Knight', I always thought that vampires should belong to classes and should die only in a particular way; NOT the cheesy 'stake-to-the-heart' crap. So, I was glad that the same concept was used by the author of 'Vampire Knight'. I own no rights :-)**

As for the Rosario + Vampire thing – I'm sorry to disappoint but I have never seen that anime nor have I ever read the manga. My friends mentioned the name a few times, though. But I don't intend on 'mixing' any other anime into my story. Sorry :-(

**Q: Are Karin and Sasuke mating?  
A: That's actually a question Sakura will have…soon ;) You'll get the answer to that later :-)**

**Q: What's the deal with Itachi? I mean she [Sakura] was going to marry him in the past life.  
A: **_**Sakura**_** wasn't going to marry Itachi in the past. AZAMI was. Sakura and Azami are two **_**completely different**_** souls contained in the same body. More of Azami and Itachi's story will be revealed later on in the story.**

**ONE MORE THING - HAPPY HOLIDAYS!**

**-IzWinchesterDevil**


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Eleven: The Apology **

When morning had arrived, Sakura awoke to find that she had fallen asleep at her desk. Initially, she had every intention to stay awake after finding the Japanese written note on her bed; but it appeared that she had been more tired than she had anticipated.

At breakfast, she was surprised to see that Sasuke had returned from his mission. He was not having anything, just simply gazing out the kitchen window.

Sakura silently cursed at the relieved feeling that overcame her at the sight of the man. She felt it only for a few seconds, but wasted no time in disliking it the moment she realized it. Inwardly she remarked at how odd the emotion was and found it hard to find an explanation. Her feeling of concern for a vampire of all beings was one she had never come across in her life. Surely Sakura was somewhat grateful to Sasuke for saving her life back in the tunnels, but at the same time, not to such an _extent_.

She drank her entire glass of orange juice and brushed off the feeling.

She mentioned nothing about the note to anyone, but did not plan to keep mum about it for too long. Someone in the mansion had to have an idea as to what it meant or to whom it was related. If not, then she decided it would be best at least to raise it to their attention.

After having a small raisin bun, Sakura helped Ino with the dishes so that she could have enough time to get herself ready for school.

She missed school. Her education was not being disrupted by her absence from school since private classes had been organized for her on evenings; however she missed the life of a normal girl. Tsunade told her that in two months she would be able to resume that life, but two months seemed to be _dragging_, for lack of a better word.

When the dishes were done, Sakura took to her room where she had a cold shower, before getting ready for training. She was told that her session was to be with someone she rarely interacted with on a daily basis.

On her way to her bedroom door, the note that was sitting upon her desk caught her eye, as well as the white rose which was already beginning to wither from dehydration. She gazed at it for a moment, wondering if it would be wise to take it along with her. Then, when she became tired of thinking, she walked over to the desk, grabbed the paper and shoved it into the depths of the pockets of her denim pants.

Usually, whenever Sakura left the mansion, she would simply close her bedroom door without locking it since she always kept her valuables with her wherever she went. And she trusted the other residents enough to respect her privacy. However, after learning about her very discreet and unwanted visitor, Sakura divested all possible accessibility to her room.

She checked her windows three times to ensure that they were locked, and locked the door to her bedroom.

* * *

On her way downstairs, Sakura collided with Tenten who was carrying some of her washed clothes to her room.

"It seems that we're always doing this," Sakura said, recalling their first meeting at school, as she helped the female vampire pick up the scattered pieces of clothing.

Tenten chuckled and nodded. "I heard your training partner today is Neji Hyuuga," Tenten relayed with a wide smile plastered across her face.

Sakura gave her an expression that read, 'Really?'

"Yeah, so I'll give you a few pointers," Tenten said when they had finally gathered the rest of the clothes, "Neji uses his clan's signature fighting style, mostly taijutsu, otherwise termed 'hand-to-hand combat'. When he fights you, beware of his strikes because he uses chakra. And be careful where he hits you – he aims for the pressure points."

"Okay, thanks. I'll keep that in mind," Sakura said gratefully. "Seems you've done quite a lot of training with him for you to gather so much on his skill," she added.

"Not much. I was only able to gather _so little_ since we've only had two training sessions together. I just dig his style. He's very a worthy opponent," Tenten defended herself from whatever Sakura was implying and smirked.

"Oh, and you might want to hurry. Neji's waiting for you out front – he's giving you a lift to the arena too," Tenten added before wishing Sakura luck and carrying on up to her room.

* * *

Sakura was too exhausted to even sit properly on the bench. And she felt uncomfortable with her sweat-drenched clothes clinging to her sticky skin. She had still been dehydrated after drinking six entire bottles of water.

"We've only been training for three hours and all you've managed to do was dodge my attacks," Neji said as he handed her another bottle of water, "I must say, I was expecting more from you, Sakura Haruno."

Sakura was unable to respond to Neji's words. He was telling the truth – she could not land a single blow on his body. Why?

"_When he fights you, beware of his strikes because he uses chakra. And be careful where he hits you – he aims for the pressure points."_

She was only heeding Tenten's wise words of caution.

"I apologize. I'll try my best to make progress before this session is over," Sakura finally replied.

She saw Neji's brow rise slightly. Had her answer taken him by surprise?

Sakura noted how much he was just like Sasuke – his tone, his expressionless façade, his speech. But there were major differences too. Unlike Neji, Sasuke's eyes seemed to have more depth and was more alluring, that ostensibly bottomless pit of darkness. It certainly added to his cold character as well.

'_Now's not the time to be thinking about Sasuke, Sakura!' _she thought to herself before anything else about the other vampire could surface her mind.

The second round of the training session began soon after.

Neji's movements were so fast, it was almost impossible to see them and she avoided them only by guess. She had expected such speed from a Pureblood vampire, however not with _this_ type of taijutsu. 'Gentle Fist' was what he called it. And he aimed directly at her chakra points which were visible to him by usage of his Byakugan.

There was absolutely no way she could touch him. He used all of his power to prevent that. Or maybe he was not even utilizing all of his strength at all.

When she felt the need to catch her breath, Sakura back flipped from her opponent to a distance of ten meters.

"Retreating already?" he taunted.

She could not tell if he was taunting her or genuinely asking a question. The veins near his eyes were no longer protruded.

"No. I just need five minutes," Sakura responded, falling backward onto the ground.

"You could not hit me because you were too busy only trying to predict my moves so that you could avoid them. I've never trained with you before, so why is it that you're so afraid that I hit you?"

"Tenten told me about your abilities," Sakura stated truthfully, confused at his sudden question. Why did he sound as though the fact that she knew about his techniques was wrong?

"I see," he muttered. "Perhaps if you weren't mindful about my skills, you would have been able to at least strike me once by now," he added sternly.

His tone was so cold it gave her the impression that he and Tenten were not on good terms.

"I'm sorry," she apologized. He was right – if she had not been conscious of his techniques, and discovered it on her own; she would have already made progress.

"We're going to stop physical training for today," Neji continued and before Sakura could voice her objection, he added, "For the rest of the day, I'm going to teach you how to utilize the sense of physical feel so that the next time you train with me, you won't be occupied by trying to _predict_ where I would hit you."

Sakura's eye brows knitted together in curiosity and then confusion, when he answered her silent question. "You are going to attain this skill by the practice of meditation…"

* * *

"Is she really gone?" Tsunade asked Kiba on entering the small house that was befittingly gloomy from the absence of light.

"That's right. From the looks of things, she passed away very early this morning," Kiba answered.

The entire house was quiet except for the tapping of Tsunade's heels in the hardwood floor, which she tried to reduce. When her hazel eyes fell upon the older woman's form, a part of her began to doubt that she was actually dead.

"She looks as though she's sleeping," Tsunade commented on the peaceful look of the deceased woman's face. "It appears that she died during her sleep."

"Seems so," Kiba agreed, "I've already contacted the funeral home and Danzo…but I think there's one more person we should inform as well, Lady Tsunade."

Tsunade's eyes nearly widened at the mention of the last person. It was not that she had forgotten that Yumi Komagata had a son, but since he betrayed the organization the mere mention of him created whirlwinds within her.

"Although he's no longer part of the organization, I agree that as Yumi's son, he has the right to know about his mother's death," Tsunade answered, "You should contact him, Kiba. I'll deal with the other matters…"

It would be better if Kiba spoke to Yumi's son on her behalf – better for them both…

* * *

After quite a long session of meditation, Sakura developed a unique skill – how to keep her mind focused solely on one thing – the one thing that she would consider important however its manifestation. She was so engrossed in the meditation that she had completely lost track of time. By now, time had flown to half past the hour of five o'clock in the evening.

"I'll take you home," Neji offered when he had finished packing his belongings.

"No," Sakura responded a bit too quickly, thus sounding rather rude, and proceeded to explain herself right away. "Let me fight you one more time. Give me an hour; and if I don't hit you by then, we will leave."

"As you wish," Neji agreed and set his bag on the bench where it had been before and followed Sakura onto the field once more.

They got into their respective stances and Sakura calmed herself after noting the fierce look in her opponent's pale eyes. This time, she was sure, Neji would not be holding back. Not even the slightest.

However it did not take her long to calm herself because within seconds, she had already begun charging at him, her mind clear of fear and all doubts, except for one intention – the intention to _win_.

It surprised her for a short moment that dodging his strikes came to her like second nature. However she did not allow herself to get caught up in the awe and lose focus.

Gradually, she began to include her feet in the duel so the chances of Neji's fall could be heightened. When he aimed his right palm at her left side, and his left palm at her chest, she saw an opening and avoided both his hands, making her way between both of his arms as though she was being embraced.

Then something peculiar happened.

The energy she felt, surging through her body in that moment was uncontrollable. But when she decided on the punch she was about to deliver to Neji's stomach, she focused the energy to the surface of her clenched fist and the power began to pool there.

Then, the last thing Sakura remembered was the feel of Neji's hard stomach against her fist and the effortless push that sent him flying backwards across the field.

The speed at which his body travelled became hidden by the risen dust, but the distance was determined after it had settled once more on the grounds.

At the sight of Neji's weakened form lying on the ground about thirty meters away from where she stood, Sakura pelted across the field and was at his side within seconds.

"Are you alright?" she asked, panicked, since she had never seen a Pureblooded Vampire in such a battered state. The back of Neji's shirt had become torn away from the rough parts of the field. And the bare flesh of his upper back that had become exposed to the rough surfaces of the ground was now covered in bruises.

Slowly, they began to heal, but the blood that oozed from them still bathed his skin.

"I'm fine," he responded firmly, trying to bring himself forward from the floor, but stopped when he began to cough and placed both of his hands against the floor to support his upper body.

At the last cough, droplets of blood splattered on the dirt.

"No you're not!" Sakura exclaimed frantically. She placed her hand on his shoulder to prevent him from overworking himself.

"Whatever you did, caused no severe harm to my insides," he stated reassuringly and wiped his mouth with the back of his palm and accepted Sakura's help back to the bench.

"Should I get you to the hospital?" Sakura inquired as they walked.

"No," he replied and paused before asking, "How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"How did you hit me with such force? What was that technique?" he explained and asked again.

"I…I don't know…" she answered honestly, "I don't know _how_ I did it. I just _did_."

"Well the Hyuuga Clan's technique involves forcible and formidable attacks with the use of chakra. And unless my eyes have deceived me, I believe I had seen that rapid flow of chakra within you," Neji suggested.

Sakura said nothing to explain his statement. She had no idea whether she had an adrenaline rush or if she had actually used chakra.

"Whatever it was you did," Neji continued when Sakura remained silent, "you should try to use it again. I've never met anyone outside of the Hyuuga Clan who can successfully attack so forcibly using chakra the way we do…"

When Neji had fully recovered, he drove Sakura home.

The journey was spent in silence until Sakura questioned him about the Hyuuga Clan and its traditions and culture. It was quite interesting to her, especially when he mentioned that the few Pureblood clans derived separate kingdoms that were acknowledged only by the vampires and werewolves who existed at the time, and that the Uchiha Clan was one of them. Along with the Hyuuga and Uchiha were the Fuuma and Ryuzaki Clans who were considered foes by the Hyuuga and Uchiha Clans.

Then, when the Shogunate was being formed, the Head of each Pureblood Kingdom battled against each kingdom to determine who was best suited for the position. They did so in secrecy from the humans and it eventually became decided that the Uchiha Clan would acquire that title. From then the other Pureblood Clans regarded the Uchiha Leader as their new 'king' and swore loyalty to them as they survived to protect and utilize the humans, keeping their identities concealed.

Sakura noted the fact that the Hyuuga Clan existed since many eons ago, and it occurred to her that Neji was more than likely to have the knowledge of reading and writing Japanese.

"Neji, if I'm not mistaken, you do know how to read Kanji, right?" she asked, just to be sure.

"Yes."

"If you don't mind," Sakura continued and dug into the pocket of her jeans, pulling out the piece of paper she had stuffed in there earlier, "Can you translate this for me?"

Neji took one glance at the paper and averted his gaze back onto the road.

"It reads: 'Moushiwake arimasen', which translates to 'I apologize'," he replied.

"Oh," she muttered as she fell into a train of thought. Sakura never thought that a simple phrase formulated by two ordinary words could sound so mysterious. The sender was apologizing, but she could not quite recall who it could have possibly come from.

"May I who gave this to you?" Neji inquired, making her aware of her surroundings once more.

"I don't know. The person didn't leave a name and I found this in my room on the night of my birthday along with a white rose and a picture frame," she replied, still staring at the kanji symbols.

"I'll inform someone from the organization and have it investigated. For now, don't be bothered too much by it," Neji said coolly, "You have far more important things to focus your attention on".

It appeared to Sakura that Neji was not too worried about anyone infiltrating the mansion. It was almost as though he had known who put the note in her room. She did not question him further, afraid that she would end up annoying him. But she was determined to uncover who the owner of the mysterious note and…_gifts _was before the end of the day.

* * *

Sasuke heard his bedroom door open and mentally matched a name to the familiar presence entering, but remained unmoved as his arms rested on the window sill, the chair supporting the rest of his body and his eyes, shut.

"I've just received word about Yumi Komagata's death," Itachi began, aware that his brother had been awake.

"Hn…" He knew that time was soon to arrive since the revelation.

"I've also just been informed that someone snuck into Sakura's room on her birthday and left her a note of apology written in Kanji," Itachi continued.

His charcoal orbs stayed fixed upon his younger brothers still form. He did not even hint any form of shock or curiosity of who the intruder was. This led Itachi to one conclusion.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Itachi asked, taking a seat at Sasuke's desk.

Sasuke said nothing for a long time. And for the first time, Itachi was clueless about what his brother had been thinking. So he too remained quiet, and waited in the darkness until his younger brother was ready to answer his question and all the silent ones that emerged one after the other.

"You must be very angry with me for taking your mate, big brother," Sasuke said after the long silence. His tone possessed a silent apology and hints of remorse and shame, capable of being detected only by Itachi.

Itachi sighed audibly before answering, "It was never written in stone that she would be mine in every lifetime, Sasuke. That's why things turned out differently this time."

Sasuke finally turned to face the older Uchiha. Then he continued.

"But you and Azami were –"

"Soul mates," Itachi completed for him, "However, you must remember…Azami and Sakura…are two completely different persons."

"Sakura's a reincarnation of Azami. How can she _not_ be the same person?" Sasuke asked stubbornly.

"Are you suggesting that I've _forgotten_ the woman to whom I was betrothed? That I've forgotten her ways and how her presence feels? Because if that's what you are implying, _Sasuke_, then you are _wrong_," Itachi stated firmly.

There was another long pause between the two brothers once again, and this time it was very much needed. Itachi had not needed to raise his voice to display his anger. The iciness of his tone gave it away and Sasuke hated being the one responsible for triggering that particular emotion from his brother.

When Azami had been burnt to death, many suffered the overwhelming wrath of Itachi Uchiha. The priest who conducted the live cremation, the villagers who encouraged it and accused her of being a witch – they were all taken to enclosed prison chambers where they were exposed to various forms of torture until the priest revealed the name of the man who instigated Azami's demise. But Itachi, blinded by rage, refused to accept that Madara had committed such an act, believing that the priest uttered the name only to escape death. And then he perished among the unavoidable, black flames of Amaterasu – a technique wielded only by the Uchihas who possessed the Sharingan.

It took a lot to get Itachi Uchiha enraged, and it also took a great deal to extinguish his fury. So when Sasuke felt as though there had been enough silence between them to dilute his vexation, he respectfully whispered with a slight bending of his head, "Moushiwake arimasen, Oniisama…"

Their eyes met for a moment and then Itachi tore his gaze away from Sasuke's.

"Speaking of apologies," Itachi started again, ignoring Sasuke's confession, "What were you apologizing to Sakura for?"

Sasuke sucked in some air and let it all out before answering. He had wished for his apology to Sakura to appear vague and remain that way to everyone. Everyone except Sakura, if she had ever deciphered the reasons behind it.

"At first, I was going to apologize to her because she felt…insulted by some things I said to her. But then, unconsciously I realized that there were other things I did that were unjust to her. Because of me, her soul is now bounded to mine; she'll lust only for me even though it's against her will and she'll despise herself as much as she despises the vampires who massacred her family…or even more. And then part of me directed it to…Azami-san. However it is she has reincarnated – be it Sakura's soul or a soul contained within Sakura's body – because of the bond, she will be unable to be with you."

Sasuke mentioned the last part harboring a heavy amount of guilt, Itachi detected.

"So you apologized for all that," Itachi voiced his understanding.

"When is the funeral?" Sasuke then asked changing the subject immediately and Itachi went with the flow since knew that Sasuke had been uncomfortable with expressing himself fully. He usually gave unclear, one-worded answers when asked questions. But not when answering to Itachi. Such was the relationship between the two brothers.

"It's tomorrow afternoon," Itachi replied.

"Will _he_ be there?" Sasuke continued questioning.

"Of course," Itachi said, looking at his younger brother now, "After all, he _is_ Yumi's son."

"I don't trust him," Sasuke further commented.

"I know. However, I do believe everyone makes their decisions based on particular reasons and Dan was no different. You shouldn't concern yourself with Dan's presence too much. He'll only be here for one day. Instead, you should think of explaining to Sakura that the note she found in her bedroom was from you. Neji did tell me that she's worried that an intruder entered her room."

Sasuke was not surprised to hear that. He knew Sakura's character well enough to expect that she would have been bothered by such a happening. But he had no intention of approaching her and revealing himself to her. Because he knew that at the right time she would come to know everything by herself…

* * *

Neji was greeted by one of the servants in the foyer when he returned to his manor.

"Master Hyuuga, I've been told to inform you that Lady Komagata has passed away. The funeral is tomorrow," the servant relayed before bowing respectfully and taking his leave when Neji permitted.

Yumi's death was of no surprise to him. He felt no sentiment on hearing the news since he barely had encounters with the woman, but the last time he ever spent a great deal of time with her, it was most awkward. And he still remembered every detail of it all very clearly…

"_Komagata-sama, we shouldn't delay. Your life is at risk the longer you take to return to your home district," Neji said, slightly annoyed at the woman who was busying herself with the colorful fabrics before her eyes. _

"_Be at ease, Hyuuga-san. I'll only take a few minutes. Honestly, the next time I visit the Hyuuga household I'll be sure to tell Hiashi-sama to hire a more patient bodyguard to escort me back home," Yumi answered. _

_After she had bought the fabric of her choice, they traveled until they had arrived at a small dango shop. This time it was Neji who suggested that they stopped to take a short break. He assembled the two horses on which they traveled under a nearby tree before heading to the stall. _

"_I know you won't really need it, but would you like to have a dango, Neji-san?" Yumi offered. _

"_No, but thank you. Your kindness is great."_

_Then without further persistence, Yumi began to relish the sweetness of the thick syrup that covered its surface. And she ate them all in silence, seeing that there was nothing she knew of that would interest him in conversation. He was vampire of few words – she came to understand at least that much during the small amount of time she was with him during the journey. _

_She knew he was aware that she was staring at him, but he did not tell her off or meet her gaze. She noted that just like the other male Hyuuga vampires, Neji possessed a cold stare enough to frighten an average human, and a sharp facial structure. He was alluring, however she knew his detached personality would do him no good when he would soon have to find a mate. But then, as she focused on him moments longer, a face flashed in her mind long enough to remember the image after it had disappeared. _

_She understood what had happened since similar events occurred before this one._

_Wordlessly she rolled out a blank scroll which she kept in her traveling sack and pulled out a paint brush followed by an ink carton. And then, she began to re-create the image that was in her head. _

_Neji watched in silence as the older woman began to paint rather distinct picture of a woman, with just the use of black ink._

"_When I looked at you, this woman's face unconsciously surfaced my thoughts," Yumi suddenly said as her hands continued to work. "I have a feeling she hasn't been born yet, but I know who she will be." _

_When Yumi raised her head, their eyes met. "She will be the one to give you a family," Yumi revealed._

_Neji frowned and tore his gaze away. He knew Yumi had always been truthful when reading anyone's future. However he found this prediction rather hard to believe, especially when the woman he was betrothed to was one from the clan itself. The woman in the painting had dark eyes unlike the trademark pale purple color of the Hyuugas'._

"_I think it's time to continue to our destination, Komagata-sama…"_

Neji opened one of the cabinets near his closet and took the dust-covered scroll into his hands. Yumi Komagata had given it to him at the end of his escort mission and he had kept it locked away ever since then. He had thought about throwing it into flames a long time ago, but then the mere thought seemed disrespectful to the honorable Oracle.

In the past, though he had been betrothed to Kaiko, there had been rare moments when he would remember Yumi's prediction and spend some time observing the painting on the scroll until the portrait was etched in his memory. Then, his family decided to allow him and Kaiko to meet several times since their alliance had been an arranged one and they had not been familiar with each other; and very soon he had forgotten the woman in the painting. He was able to easily _will_ himself to forget her. He was a man who was known for setting his priorities straight and never let anything get in his way of fulfilling his duties. The Hyuuga Clan and their will – he was devoted to that. They had decided that he would marry Kaiko and he was expected to abide.

But then before he and Kaiko could be wedded, the war broke out and claimed her life along with the majority of the Hyuuga Clan. He felt no sadness on learning of her death since he was never in love with her. Their marriage would have been one for convenience.

Strange enough, days after the war had ceased, he found the scroll that contained the painting under a pile of ruble. It had not been damaged too much – only a few tears on its edges. However, the minor damages to the thick parchment had done nothing to degrade the feminine beauty that was vividly brushed onto it.

As time passed he kept the scroll hidden just as he did before the war and never looked at it again until now…ever since someone baring a strong resemblance to that woman suddenly appeared…weeks ago. For the first time in years, Neji carefully examined the image of the woman. Her beauty was great and so captivating that it would have a lesser man crumble at her feet. Her hair was dark and flowed past her shoulders. Shorter layers of hair framed her pale face. But for Neji, the most interesting thing about her had been the sadness harbored in her eyes.

These eyes were what had created the doubt in him about the woman resembling the female in the painting. They contrasted greatly. Sadness differed from gleaming cheeriness.

So he thought that it was possible that still, his 'soul mate' had not been born yet; or maybe had been elsewhere.

Though, whether it had been in a dream or sometime ago in reality, Neji was certain that he had caught a glimpse of those eyes…

* * *

Sakura was beat. Her training today had proven to be the most strenuous one she had undergone since she had arrived in Seattle. For the first time in a long while, her limbs were aching. But then the sight of the picture frame on her desk made her forget all the pain and fatigue.

She had been told not to worry about the object's 'magical' appearance, but that had certainly been proven to be inevitable.

Taking the ancient object into her hands, Sakura observed every inch of it and when her fingers brushed over the bottom right corner of the back of the frame, she felt a rough texture. She flipped it around and examined what it was.

It appeared to be an engraving of some sort of symbol. She moved into the light to have a better look. It was an engraving indeed and the symbol looked…familiar.

Then when realization hit her, she immediately raised her blouse to reveal the tattoo-like 'birthmark' she had been curious about ever since, and compared the symbol on the frame with the circular one on her stomach.

It was a precise match.

And it was then gut feelings about a number of things appeared.

She was now certain that the symbol on her stomach was no mere birthmark…or tattoo; that there existed a deeper meaning behind it. And she was sure that she had somehow been related to the person who left the photo frame and the rose in her room.

Immediately Sakura rushed to Ino's room.

If there was one person she could trust to help her, it was Ino – second to Kakashi, of course. However she found it difficult to trust him completely in the days that had gone by. Ever since she joined the organization, she had the impression that he was hiding things from her – things that were important to know.

* * *

Ino jumped at the sound of the urgent banging on her door.

"I heard you…geez!" she announced, running to the door.

When she opened it, she was surprised to find Sakura looking paler than usual with a picture frame in he hands.

"Hey…what's wrong?" Ino asked the girl who pushed past her and entered the room before saying, "Shut the door."

Ino did as she had been told.

"Did something happen?" Ino pressed.

"Do you recognize this symbol?" Sakura asked, pointing to an engraving at the back of the frame.

Ino squinted at the etching until she could completely distinguish it. She nodded. "That's the symbol of the Uchiha Clan. That photo frame must have belonged to one of the Uchiha brothers…"

"The Uchihas?" Sakura asked to confirm she had heard correctly. Ino nodded.

Sakura shoved the photo frame into Ino's hand and took off her t-shirt, catching a glimpse of Ino's eyes widening in shock at her actions.

"Then this mark," Sakura began again, "This mark belongs to one of the brothers too, right? Because their symbol is there."

Ino stared wide-eyed for a few seconds before sighing. "Sakura…we need to talk."

She waited for Sakura to put on her t-shirt before gesturing her to have a seat beside her on her bed. She exhaled before beginning to speak.

"I knew that we couldn't hide this from you. I knew that it wasn't the right thing to do either. I don't know about the photo frame, but I do about the mark on your stomach."

That sentence completely won Sakura's attention. The girl was now staring wide-eyed, her lips slightly parted in shock.

"I didn't tell you anything about the symbol on your body because I was sworn to secrecy. I argued with Kakashi that it wasn't right to keep you in the dark…but in the end I lost," she resumed speaking, "The mark is actually a brand identical to the vampire you're mated to –"

"My mate!"

"It's a law created by the organization – one that never had to be obeyed before…that was until now. The thing is, since you're the Prophetic Child the organization couldn't let you die…so that's why Sasuke was left with no other option but to turn you into a vampire. And according to the organization's rules, once you turn a human into a vampire you must also bond with them…"

"A-And that's exactly what Sasuke did? I-I'm his _mate_ now!"

Ino looked away, conveying to Sakura that her interpretation was correct.

At this point Sakura felt like dying. The moment she became a vampire, she felt as though her soul slowly began to disintegrate; and now with the news she had just heard, she felt like the process had just sped up.

She wanted everything to be over instantly. She no longer wanted to be Sakura Haruno, the Prophetic Child…or any other thing she was referred to as. She wanted her identity to become completely swiped off the face of the earth.

Now she was screaming on the inside, infuriated. She wanted so badly to just go to sleep and disappear; to escape this torture; to avoid living the majority of her life as though she was on the brink of losing her mind…

She wanted out. And she wanted it desperately…

* * *

**A/N: Firstly I'd like to thank all of my readers and reviewers for sending your thoughts about the story so far and your patience with me thus far has been greatly appreciated. **

**I'll let you all know that chapter twelve has been totally completed and will be released after I receive at least 10 reviews about this chapter. Constructive criticism is encouraged.  
**

**Once again, feel free to voice your questions in your reviews and I'll try my best to answer them.  
**

**- IzWinchesterDevil.  
**


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Twelve: The Funeral **

Her insides were crumbling. Everything before her – the room and whatever it contained – did not seem real. Time froze and not a single breath of air blew in from the open window. But she felt cold. Ino was saying something to her, but Sakura only saw her lips move, emitting no sound at all.

When she was finally able to snap out of the shock, Sakura found that she had been seated on Ino's bed.

"Are you alright?" Ino asked her and she gently bowed her head in a slow nod.

"You got me scared. You weren't responding and you looked paler than usual," Ino said after a deep sigh. She touched her palm to Sakura's cheek.

"I think I need to be…by myself for a while," Sakura told her worried friend and retreated to her room.

Once her door was locked, she turned around and leaned her back against its surface. Up until now, something wrench intensely in her chest, increasing as she played Ino's words over and over in her head. Suddenly she felt the strength in her knees diminishing and her body began to slump to the ground helplessly.

It did not take long for her vision to become clouded and very soon fat, heated tears emerged from her eyes. And she did nothing to contain them or her sobs.

She felt dirty...and even more scarred than before. She was born to be unlucky. Enduring this...ordeal...seemed impossible. She accepted this as part of her punishment for being the only survivor of her family's massacre, but part of her believed that her punishment would gradually end her life.

Sakura wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand even though they would be soon replaced by new tears.

She was wrong. Death was something she considered a gift, at this point.

Sakura spent a few minutes, sitting there, drowning silently in her misery, until Ino came knocking at her door, informing her about dinner. That was when Sakura decided that she needed to be away from these people; these people who did not have enough trust in her to tell her what they did to her.

To them, she felt like a puppet – something they could control do as they pleased with, just so that their goal could be reached...

* * *

Tenten scoured the park and in a matter of seconds, she was able to locate the girl who possessed that unusual bright, pink colored hair. For a moment she simply stood there, watching the young vampire gaze out into the forest at the other side of the lake as she sat at the end of the wooden pier that protruded out into the murky blue mass of water. Her feet had been in the water which had been why Tenten was able to locate her with ease.

By simply looking at her, Tenten was able to relate to Sakura. She had once been in her position. There was a time where she felt lost and did not really understand her purpose of living. Everyone dear to her had left the world; she knew nothing of the love of a family.

Through her struggle for her meaningless survival, she learned to slay remorselessly and soon enough she had lost her heart.

Tenten made her way toward the pier, thinking of what she would say to the troubled young vampire. As she approached, Sakura made no gesture to acknowledge Tenten's presence, but Tenten knew that Sakura had been aware of her arrival from the flow of Sakura's chakra which she felt because of the water.

Wordlessly, Tenten removed her flat-heeled leather ankle boots and taking a seat beside Sakura, she immersed her feet into the water.

For a while the two said nothing; just gazed at the scenery before them. But after a moment, Tenten was the one to break the unwavering and frustrating silence.

"I know how it feels," she began, not taking her eyes off the forest in front of them.

She felt Sakura's gaze drift upon her, but Tenten kept her focus on the mass of greenery and continued to speak when Sakura remained unspoken.

"I too once felt as though I had been leading a worthless life when I was much younger. I didn't have a family; I didn't own riches and had no goals. Most of the time I would ask myself, "What's the point in living?" and I'd often contemplated suicide. But then one day I sat down and did some careful thinking. I thought about why I was deprived of a happy life with parents to love me and cousins to play with. And when I finally accepted the source of my unhappiness, I found a goal; my reason for living."

Tenten paused and faced Sakura, their eyes finally meeting.

"That's what I think you should do too…find the main reason you were deprived a normal life and let your unhappiness be justified. These events all happened because of that prophecy that was made to eliminate Uchiha Madara, right?"

Sakura nodded.

"He's the reason you're suffering, so don't give up without making him pay. If you had died down in those tunnels, the Prophecy would have been nullified and Madara would have already succeeded with his plans. Your parents' deaths which happened as planned by the divine forces, would have been for nothing. I understand what it's like to be forced to become something you despise…but for the sake of those whose lives have been sacrificed for the grand event, you need to bear with what Sasuke did," Tenten said and paused before adding, "Whenever you're ready, please come back. The others are devastated. Even _Sasuke's_ out of it, believe it or not."

Sakura raised her head at Tenten's last sentence. Was he genuinely worried? Yes, he probably was…since without her the Prophecy would be annulled. The thought was deflating.

Then upon realizing what she had been thinking, she cursed herself inwardly for feeling even the slightest bit of hope that Sasuke had been genuinely concerned.

She took a deep breath and casted aside the feeling. Tenten was right. She had to remember the promise she made to her deceased parents – that she would avenge their deaths before she died.

"Who was the one responsible for your unhappiness, Tenten?" Sakura asked on a note of curiosity and also to attempt to understand her character better.

The older vampire's eyes narrowed as her lips curved into a smile.

"You don't need to worry about that. It's being taken care of," she answered, "I'll leave you to your thoughts, but remember what I told you. And please come home soon..."

* * *

When Sakura entered the foyer of the mansion, she was greeted by silence. She thought that it was possible that everyone had gone to sleep or were busying themselves with school assignments. However, when she went into the living room, she saw Kakashi sitting on one of the luxurious leather sofas, opposite to the armchair Ino was occupying. Hinata and Neji were also present.

Sakura stood motionless and mutely for a few seconds, contemplating what she should say to them. She felt guilty upon seeing them uneasy. But when their eyes caught sight of her still form at the entrance, Ino quickly scrambled to her feet and rushed over to Sakura, throwing her arms around the girl and embracing her tightly. By the time Ino had released her, Kakashi was already at her side.

"I'm sorry for causing you so much worry," Sakura apologized to everyone before they could say anything. An apology – the acceptance of being wrong – was the best way to begin rectifying any dispute.

"No, Sakura," Kakashi said, stepping up from behind Ino, "It is I who must apologize. I kept you in the dark from something concerning your life and for that I'm…truly sorry."

Sakura listened to his words carefully though that was not needed since they were laced with sincerity.

"It's okay. I'll put all this behind me – the secret-keeping and…the bond. But please don't ever hide anything from me again…if you trust me."

Kakashi nodded and asked if she would be alright and she assured him.

And just as Kakashi, Neji and Hinata were taking their leave, Sakura became uneasy. She could feel a pair of eyes, watching her from somewhere in the house; an unwavering gaze, _boldly_ looking at her.

She remained in the living room when Ino saw the others out the door, still feeling spied upon. Carefully, she took quick glimpses around the room and when her eyes traveled upstairs, there staring right into her gaze was the brooding, younger Uchiha survivor. He stood on the marble balcony with his hands buried in the side pockets of his pants.

For a long time, their eyes remained connected but Sakura, as always, was unable to read whatever had been contained in the charcoal depths. Her breath had caught in her throat at the sight of him. Her thoughts became conflicted. She wanted to confront him, but disagreed with the desire to do so at the same time.

His onyx gaze seemed to burn right through her. Then as she looked on, she realized he was not simply watching her – his look seemed to be scolding her. The way his eyebrows seemed more tightly knitted together than usual highlighted the flaring anger in his eyes.

He was mad at her reckless behavior. And she was not surprised, for she would have been too, if the person considered the means of avenging her family was destroyed because of their thoughtless actions.

He was the first to look away and when he did, he left the balcony, retreating into his room, causing the indistinguishable feeling inside her to gradually dissolve.

* * *

_Goguryeo (Korea), 1342._

Approaching the compound, a faint smell of blood wafted the air and diffused through the pores of the fabric of her mask. Angered by the assumption that other assassins had been one step ahead of her, she commanded her horse to run faster.

The rusty scent flared her nostrils upon arriving at the compound. The guards were killed; their bodies lay scattered across the small courtyard. When she entered the building she was met with the bodies of servants lifelessly positioned against sword-slashed Changhoji doors, reddened with splatters of blood.

With stealth, she entered the main room and as expected she found her target's body lying on the floor, covered in slashes to the heart and liver. There was no doubt that he was dead. No vampire could possibly survive wounds like that; not even one of noble blood. As she scanned the room, she allowed her body to feel for hints of chakra signatures. But there were either none…or whoever had been present were experts at concealing their chakra. Cautiously, she placed her hand on the hilt of the sheathed tanto (knife) that had been fastened across her lower back.

Judging from the scene, her target was taken by surprise when he had been attacked. It was probable that he had not been given the chance to process the situation when he died. She commended the assassin who carried out the massacre, but she was certainly not happy that she would now be unable to attain the information she wanted.

She inhaled deeply and then let the air out in a frustrated sigh. She had spent nearly fifteen years searching for this man – the vampire named Aidou Shimizu. Through sources upon sources she had finally discovered that Aidou had migrated from Nippon (Japan) to Goguryeo (Korea). But now all of her efforts had gone in vain.

She looked at the dead male once more and her keen eye caught sight of something suspicious; something that could have easily been missed. Aidou's right arm had been stretched out above him on the ground and his index finger appeared to be crookedly pointing at something.

Immediately, she began investigating every inch of every bit of furniture that had been in the directed area. And just when thoughts that nothing existed there had began to surface, she found a note concealed in a white paper envelope beneath several books in a wooden cabinet.

With haste, she removed the folds at the top of the envelope and let the folded note slide out of it and into the right palm of her hand. It had contained exactly what she had been searching for. It was the only thing she would slay one thousand men for without hesitance and remorse, or go one thousand days without the nourishment of blood for. A name. It was the name of the man responsible for the death of her clan.

Clutching the note in her hand, she turned around to take her leave when her eyes fell upon the silhouette at the room's exit.

_**x.X.x**_

His eyes met with the assassin's gaze which narrowed in fierce determination to win the fight that was due to come with their encounter. Neji's eyes shifted to the lifeless body of Aidou-san on the wooden floor and then back to the murderer standing beside him. Then his eyes drifted to the white parchment in his hand.

Neji thought back to the letter Aidou-san had sent to the Hyuuga Clan and how seemingly desperate his words sounded. Aidou-san had desperately wanted to meet with them, stating that he had something of great importance to expose. But from what welcomed them as he and Hinata-sama rode into the compound, Neji regrettably came to the realization that they were too late.

Neji concluded that the reason for Aidou-san's slaughter was composed in the parchment that was now in the clutches of the assassin before him, who had been garbed in a pair of black hakama trousers, tucked inside his footwear. A hakamashita and long but sleeveless vest covered his upper body, wearing it outside the trousers, fastened together by a black colored kaku obi (sash) at his waist. The assassin's face, like Neji's, was covered except for his eyes. His attire was Japanese or very similar.

Unsheathing his katana Neji said to the assassin in fluent Hangugo (Korean language), "If you give me the note, you will live."

"Aniyo," the assassin responded, mirroring Neji's action as he tucked the note somewhere inside his hakamashita.

Then they lunged at each other without another word; and metal clashed against metal, but the blades only sliced the wind. The assassin, Neji noted, wielded his sword to slash only at the body's vital organs and he would have succeeded many times had Neji not been careful to block at the right time. A second too early or late would result in a slow and painful death. He aimed at Neji's heart, but when Neji parried the attack, the assassin applied increased strength to his blade against Neji's, pushing him away. Enough space was created between them for the assassin to swiftly twirl and swipe again, but this time he aimed at Neji's lower left side, possibly attempting to slash his kidney or intestine or even both.

When Neji found the chance, he initiated an attack and when the assassin blocked, using his index and middle fingers together, Neji struck at a point on his opponent's chest.

_**x.X.x**_

She could not understand why, but even though her opponent's unusual strike missed her heart by almost two inches, it felt as though her heart had been pierced through with a blade, and she had been overcome with such excruciating pain that she fell to her knees and coughed. Then she tasted rusty fluids in her mouth that emerged from the depths of her throat.

"I've hit a tenketsu which is one of many nodes that release chakra. By insertion of some of my chakra into your chakra pathway system, it appears that I've injured your heart. And now you have very little time to live."

The agony was so overbearing that she found it difficult to focus on his words. But after a short moment she was able to register what she had been told.

Who was _he_ to decide her death?

Shutting her eyes for a moment, she recalled what her master, Shin Tae-Hyun, had told her back at the assassins' guild in Nippon…

"_Ji Ah, as an assassin you have no right to question the missions you are given. You are forbidden to let your targets live even on a mere whim. It is your duty to complete the tasks handed to you. However, as an assassin, you do have the right to choose whose hand you die by…"_

At that recollection, her palm tightened around the hilt of her katana. And in one quick motion, she slashed it at her opponent's knees. Although he was able to avoid the blow, since he had been taken by surprise, his sense of direction had become confused and he fell onto a few pieces of furniture.

By now she was once again on her feet, though it was difficult to keep her balance. Her situation was still critical, however she willed herself to wrestle with death and be the victor, hoping to the Shinto Deities that the odds would be in her favor.

"I'm sorry to disappoint, but I refuse to die by your hand," she told the male, pointing her sword at his lying form on the broken wooden crafts. "Today, _I'm_ the one who shall let you live since you were not my target."

And as she turned on her heel to leave, the sound of something swift, cutting through the air, coming toward her, was brought to her attention.

With the hand which gripped her katana, she was able to deflect the flying kunai. Then she hurried outside to find the weapon's source and cursed when she became face to face with another shinobi. From the hakama worn by her new opponent, she inferred that the woman was a kunoichi. Under the luminous moonlight she was able to see the silvery glow of her opponent's eyes. The kunoichi was a _Hyuuga_.

Suddenly she was able to make sense of the way she had been injured by the male she had previously fought.

"Are you alright, nii-san?" the woman asked the male in Japanese tongue, who was now emerging from the room's exit behind.

"Hn..."

"I have nothing against the Hyuuga Clan," Ji Ah said to them in Japanese – her native tongue – and when she turned to the male, she added, "however, if you obstruct my way, I shall _not_ hesitate to end your existence."

"We'll see whose existence becomes annihilated," the male responded as he gracefully descended the few stone steps, "I already told you – you have but a few moments to live. Your death is unavoidable."

"And _I've_ already decided that I refuse to let you kill me!" Ji Ah spat and readied her sword.

At this point Ji Ah knew she needed to keep distant from the male. Behind her the female Hyuuga began to close in on her. Fiddling with her free arm a bit, Ji Ah was able to retrieve from within her sleeve, one of her black pearls – a heavy, round bead-like stone that once belonged to her deceased mother. And then she threw them at the male as though she had been handling a shuriken.

Then she threw her body to her right and successfully jagged her elbow into the female Hyuuga's stomach causing her to fall to the ground. She knew that her attack would do no harm to the female Pureblood, but it was enough to keep her down for a bit. Ji Ah was aware that she was in no condition to handle two _Pureblood_ vampires at the same time.

With the remaining strength she had, Ji Ah attempted to charge at the male in front of her once more, but when she was halfway there, a sudden spasm of pain surged through her chest and her balance faltered, but she prevented her entire body from falling to the floor by piercing her katana into the stone ground to support herself.

More blood escaped her lips beneath her mask.

She could hear the male Hyuuga approaching. But inwardly, she urged herself to get up. She refused to let death win and die without accomplishing her life long goal.

"That's enough, Ji Ah," said a male voice behind her. She did not recognize it and doubted that she was familiar with him since everyone she knew had been long dead. But somehow _he_ knew _her_.

However, she had long been freed of anyone's ownership and chose to never follow anyone's commands. She was no longer a dog bound to the guild of assassins and as a lone assassin; she had attained the right of free will.

Slowly, she began to steady her feet on the ground and when she control her poise, she turned to the person behind her.

He was masked, just like she was and his clothes had been stained with blood; _fresh_ blood. He had recently taken a life…or _lives_.

"Did you kill Aidou?" she asked the man.

"And what if I did?" he answered guardedly.

"Are you one of _his_ men?" she probed once more.

"And what if I am?"

She said nothing else. For now, she would forget the Hyuuga male for she had been blessed with the opportunity to find the whereabouts of her clan's slayer. Though, just as she had removed her sword from the earth, the newcomer had released a smoke tag, obstructing her vision…

* * *

_Konoha Cemetery, Present. _

Sakura kept pace with the rest of the organization's members as they journeyed on the concrete pathway through the cemetery. Carrying the casket at the front were Itachi, Neji, Kakashi, Sasuke, Shikamaru and someone she did not recognize. From the black suit her wore, she determined he was a male. However, he possessed long, white – almost silver – hair which he kept in a high ponytail.

Sakura noticed that only reputable persons from the organization had taken up the task of carrying Yumi's casket and questioned the stranger's presence during the procession.

"Who is he?" she whispered to Hinata who had been walking right beside her, and gestured at the white-haired man.

"His name is Dan Kato," Hinata answered in her usual soft-spoken voice, "He is the one and only son of Yumi Komagata. He used to be part of the organization, but then he left for some unnamed reason."

That explained why Sakura was not familiar with him. She was unaware that Yumi had a child.

"But because he hadn't clearly explained why he left the Dark Coven, most of the members don't trust him, thinking that he had some sort of ulterior motive," Hinata continued, "He used to be the President of the organization's branch in New York City."

"I see. How many branches does the Dark Coven have?" Sakura asked curiously, keeping her tone hushed.

"One in every state, however the main one is here in Seattle since it's the largest and has the most members."

They rested the wooden casket upon the makeshift bier which had already been prepared a few meters away from Yumi's freshly dug resting area, and the ushers uniformly gathered to the right of the human sized box. Everyone else gathered near the body as the priest performed the required rituals.

The Eulogy was made by Hiashi Hyuuga, head of the Hyuuga Clan and Hinata's father, since Yumi appeared to be well acquainted with the family.

After the burial, Tsunade beckoned Sakura to meet her where she had been conversing with Hiashi Hyuuga and another unfamiliar male character.

Expertly masking her timidity, Sakura strode toward her boss, hoping that her strides were seemingly confident enough.

"Sakura I'd like to introduce you to Danzo Shimura, the _founder_ of the Dark Coven Organizations," Tsunade said to her, extending her arm out in the man's direction in a formal manner of introduction.

Sakura shook his hand, smiled and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir."

So it had appeared tha there _was_ someone of a higher position than Tsunade's in the organization.

"Oh no, my dear…the pleasure is _all mine_," Danzo responded with a smirk that charmed her. He seemed to be young – probably in his early twenties. And apart from the scar that took the shape of an 'X' on his chin, his alabaster skin was flawless. But what seemed most enchanting about the man were his gold-colored eyes that made his gaze upon her so spellbinding that she had to almost force herself to look away.

"Though I'm sure we would have met later, I'm glad for the opportunity to finally meet you, Sakura Haruno."

Sakura knew he was not flirting; however it had been an uncontrollable habit for her blood to suddenly rush to her cheeks whenever complimented or making clumsy mistakes in front of people. She had no clue what to say in response, so she simply smiled. She had always believed that a smile was the easiest way of a difficult situation. It was less likely to cause conflict.

Then, almost as though he had sensed her awkward position, Kakashi walked over and greeted Danzo.

"Well if it isn't the busy Danzo Shimura," Kakashi hailed out fondly.

"It certainly has been a long time, Copy Ninja," Danzo responded in the same tone. Sakura took it that the two were well acquainted.

Before she began to look awkward just standing there while the two males engaged in conversation, Sakura courteously asked to be excused and silently slipped away from them.

* * *

It was unbelievable – the fact that he was _there_, only a few meters away from her; _within her reach_. It tempted her to just pull out the pocket knife her that fingers seemed reluctant to let go of, beneath her black coat, and pierce it through his heart consecutively to her heart's content; until he was in so much agony that he could no longer cry out; until there was no more blood left to bleed from his body.

But how much time would she have to relish in his anguish? The other Dark Coven members were all present. The fact that she was outnumbered only meant that she would be stopped before she could strike him with another blow.

Tenten glanced down. She was impatient…but she could not afford to let her impatience cloud her thinking. She cared nothing for her survival _once_ she had successfully murdered Danzo – she did not care that she would have to suffer the wrath of the Dark Coven members afterward. On the other hand, she needed to be _sure_ that he was dead after she attacked him and for that, time was needed – time which this current moment did not provide.

Tenten glanced up at Danzo once more, her hand still lingering on the hilt of her knife. She could feel the heat radiating from her body. The red was beginning to filter through. If only she had her gun and silver bullets...

Then suddenly the feeling of a hand tightly gripping her arm and forcibly yanking her backward, broke her out of her rage. Her breath caught in her throat as the person behind spun her body around to face him.

"What do you think you're _doing_!" Neji growled at her, the hint of shock and confusion in his tone.

"Who were you going to pull that knife for? If I remember correctly, your gaze was fixed upon _Lord Danzo_."

Overcoming the shock quickly, Tenten thought of something to say.

"No…I just…thought I saw someone…_strange_," she lied immediately in response, knitting her eyebrows together to make her answer convincing enough. And she said her words as though they had not just recently popped into her mind. Having had to act innocent all these years, made this performance child's play.

"Where?" he asked. He seemed to buy her reaction and she rejoiced inwardly at her success. Either she was an expert...or Neji Hyuuga was simply _dense_.

"There was a man standing behind that guy with the scar – Danzo, you said his name was? – looking quite suspicious. I was merely taking precaution, that's all."

"I see. Where did the man go?"

"I'm not sure. You interrupted my observation," she continued to lie smoothly, staring directly into his pale eyes, "I'll go look around."

He let her go. She seemed to be telling the truth. But for a moment, from behind she looked as though she was about to strike out at Danzo. Also, when he forced her to face him, for a spilt second, he could have sworn he had caught a fleeting look at some sort of murderous intent in her eyes.

"Brother?" a shy voice behind him said softly, causing him to dismiss his thoughts.

"What is it, Lady Hinata?"

"Um…nothing really…well…it's not important or anything, but there's something I felt I should let you know" she said…almost nervously and when he beckoned her to continue, she asked, "Remember that time when we went to seek Aidou-san in Korea at his request?"

He recalled the event vividly in his mind.

"Yes. What of it?"

"I had a dream about it last night. It was almost exactly like the incident – the dead bodies; the duel with the assassin," Hinata told him, "I found it a bit strange that something that happened such a long time ago would resurface in my dreams."

"Hn…that assassin, he certainly was something. I'm sure he's dead by now. After all, I ensured severe internal damage to his heart, so there's nothing to worry about," he guaranteed.

"Yes…I'm sure you're right…"

* * *

Tsunade rummaged through her handbag as she walked over to the cemetery's parking lot. Though she had applied for a day off due to the funeral, an unexpected emergency surfaced that only she could attend to since the hospital had been short on staff.

Muttering a few curses under her breath, she placed her bag on the hood of her car, and opened it wider so that she was able to peer into it. The number of items she kept in there was ridiculous, making it difficult to locate her keys.

"Disorganized as always, I see," the voice of the one person she had been trying to avoid said behind her. She ceased her search and raised her head, thinking to herself how unlucky she was and cursing some more as she shut her eyes.

"You haven't changed, Tsunade," the man continued to speak, completely oblivious to her reaction.

Finally she decided to face him. She removed her sunglasses, revealing her hazel eyes to the man.

"Dan," she addressed with a curt bow, "It's been a while."

"Indeed," he agreed with a smile. That smile that she used to fall in love with a long time ago.

"I'm sorry for your loss," she continued, fighting to keep a cool demeanor. But she truly felt sorry for his mother's death.

"We were all expecting it, weren't we? I had enough time to prepare myself mentally for this day," he said to her honestly, "On another note…how have you been?"

"Great…" she said, not knowing what else to say.

Then there was a pregnant silence between them that prolonged her suffering from discomfiture. When it became too much, Tsunade decided to break it by asking what had always come to mind whenever she thought of him.

"Dan, why did you leave the organization?"

He took some time before presenting her with an answer. He sighed, shoved his hands into his pockets and tore his eyes from hers.

"I…" Dan began, "wish I could tell you the real reason why I left. But I believe my reason is something you need to understand and become willing to accept before I can confirm it to you. If I tell you now, you will say that I'm lying. So when the right time comes, you'll understand my departure. I was nice to see your gorgeous face again after so much yearning. Take care, Tsunade..."

And then for a brief moment he took his hand into hers and gave it a gentle squeeze before releasing it and walking past her. She felt like her heart was in knots. She sucked in some air, shuddering as she did as though she was about to break down and cry. Tsunade could not lie to herself anymore. She still loved him.

"Wait!"

He did as she commanded, but did not look around.

"I just need to know one thing…" Tsunade stated nervously. She was uncertain of whether he would answer truthfully or not. To be honest, she hoped that he would lie to her if the truth was not what she wanted hear.

"Are you working for Madara?"

She said it. And now she waited with her hand clenching the fabric that covered her chest, hoping silently. She could _hear_ her heart thumping as she waited.

And then he spoke.

"I can never betray you, my love…"

* * *

Sasuke's eyes traveled from crowd to crowd as he scoured for the face of the annoying blob of pink. It was just something he began doing ever since he sensed her being followed at that time she went to visit her parents' grave in Spokane.

He would occasionally ensure that she was out of danger before carrying on with his business. Of course he did this discreetly. He did not want her to attain the impression that he was stalking her. The fool was certainly inclined to jump to such stupid conclusions.

It was not like he genuinely _cared_ for her wellbeing. She was the bringer of Madara's demise, so she needed to stay alive. After that...the chances of her being in danger would be slim, and he would no longer feel responsible for her welfare.

When he heard her voice somewhere behind him, Sasuke stopped searching.

"Sakura, I'll give you a lift," he heard Ino say to her followed by her acceptance to the offer.

Now she had been walking side by side with him, so when one of the funeral's attendees brushed past her from behind, accidentally nudging her shoulder and causing her balance to falter, Sasuke was able to effortlessly stop her from falling forward.

His left arm had encircled her petite waist from the front, and she instinctively held on to his left shoulder. She smelt of apple blossom, he noted and caught her gaze when she turned her head to face her savior. Her body seemed to tense at the sight of him.

He became unusually displeased when he suddenly realized that she had to see his face in order to recognize him. Should she not know him by his chakra...or more preferably, his _touch_? He did not even realize that the thought was absurd and was not something he would generally concern himself with.

Their gazes remained locked even as he helped her regain a sturdy posture.

"Hn...Can't even avoid getting bumped into," he muttered.

She did not seem to hear his words, or perhaps she simply decided to ignore them because she just mumbled a soft, 'Thank you'.

Then he added in a more audible tone, "Meet me in the garden's atrium when you arrive back at the mansion." He had come to the decision that there were _matters_ they needed to address.

She nodded curtly to signal that she heard him before hurrying after Ino.

He shook his head in annoyance and let his hand fall to his sides once more.

"Well if it isn't the famous Sasuke Uchiha," he heard a man address him ahead. He looked to where the voice came from and found himself face to face with a smiling Dan Kato.

'_What does he want?' _Sasuke thought, annoyed by the man's mere presence.

"I heard you found yourself a mate so I just wanted to congratulate you," he teased and put his arm out, "Congratulations."

Not feeling the need to provide the man with explanations he had been in no position to hear, Sasuke simply took his and shook it firmly, and felt a flexible, crisp object slip into his palm. And after a respectful bow, Dan wordlessly left Sasuke to decode what he had given him.

Once Dan was out of sight and Sasuke had reached his car, he quickly unfolded the piece of paper that was handed to him in the disguise of a normal handshake; and he began to read its contents. He assumed that it had to be something of great importance for Dan to move so prudently.

"_The child must not be born otherwise the one to whom you've sworn fidelity must be unaware…"_

* * *

Sakura carefully avoided the puddles of mud as she continued down the cleared pathway to the heart of the garden where Sasuke had told her to meet him. Along the way, she was given company from the various scents of the flora that adorned the place.

The perfume of the roses charmed her and when the wind coursed through the air, it brought with it the scent of the magnolia flowers.

When she reached the heart of the garden, her eyes wandered around until the man standing near the angel fountain, still fully clad in his funeral outfit, came into view.

"You're late," was what he greeted her with.

To that she said nothing and decided to begin discussing her assumption of reason he summoned her.

"If you called me out here to apologize for what you did to me, then forget it. It won't change the past."

"That's not why I wanted to see you," Sasuke stated matter-of-factly, taking a few steps toward her. And she thought of distancing herself, but did not do it. She kept her eyes on his no matter much they threatened to drift down to his perfect lips. It was daring, _tempting_ to feel what they would be like against hers. Would they be soft? How would they..._taste_?

Her eyes widened upon realizing the forbidden thoughts, and quickly she looked away. Why did this always happen? What were these…_confusing_ feeling? Sometimes she wondered if she really despised the male Pureblood for turning her into a vampire.

"I wanted to tell you about what you should expect from our…bond," he continued when he was satisfied with the distance between them. "In my parents' time, bonding was considered marriage. Treat it however you may…I don't care. The bond means that your soul belongs to me and mine to yours; our bodies are spiritually connected. Therefore if you're in pain or any type of…distress, I will know; the same goes for you."

He paused for a moment to brush away a stray strand of her pink hair off her face, causing her to blush lightly and her body to stiffen at his touch.

"However the thing you need to be most aware of is the mating period that normally occurs for five days at the beginning of every month; and the entire months of September and October," Sasuke stated as though he had been discussing the weather.

"Mating season?" Sakura repeated, disbelieving that there was such a thing.

"I know nothing much of it, however that time is coming. And when it does the only person you will yearn for is _me_…and you won't stop until you become pregnant. So in order to avoid that, from the time it begins until the time it ends, you'll need to stay away from me," Sasuke warned seriously.

"What do you mean you don't know about it? Aren't you and Karin mates?" Sakura asked once she had broken free from the astonishment.

"No. Karin is merely a pawn whose survival is based on what she…provides for me," he explained and she was surprised that he even bothered to do so.

Sakura nodded gently upon understanding what he said. He was talking about nourishment and…physical pleasures.

"So you're saying that I won't have enough strength to control myself around you?" Sakura asked for a better understanding, sounding slightly offended.

"Exactly. That goes for the both of us. Use your head, Sakura. Neither you nor I've been exposed to this before. We cannot expect to possibly know exactly the kind of effect the season will have on us and how each of us will react to it. So just do as you're told instead of trying to prove yourself," he told her harshly.

He did not want anymore regrets in the future. He was already forced to claim his brother's reincarnated mate; he did not wish to disrespect him further by impregnating her revived form.

"I never said I was going to prove myself to you, _Uchiha_," she asserted venomously.

"Tomorrow you'll be training with me. Meet me at the grounds at eight," he said, ignoring her last comment and turned to exit their meeting area.

"Sasuke," Sakura called out to him as he left and this time, upon hearing her voice, he stopped to listen but remained with his back turned to her.

"I don't care that this bond is supposed to be the marriage of two souls. In my eyes, it isn't. Because in this age, most people marry out of love and there is none between us; and there never will be. So come what may, I swear that I will never submit to you until my last breath. You are nothing to me but a mentor, merely until the Prophecy is executed," she told him in a firm tone.

"We'll see about that," he muttered below his breath before continuing to leave. Why did he feel so suddenly enraged at her words? Was it not what they both wanted – a clean relationship between a mentor and disciple; between two comrades? He fought the unnatural determined feeling to make her eat her words, and stormed through the garden without looking back.

What did she expect? After all, bonding was like a marriage. But still. She felt that this was too much; too much for just a few days.

Sakura silently hoped that when all of this was over, she would be able to live a normal life – break the contract with the organization, study medicine, obtain her desired career, probably fall in love. No…that last part would never happen. No human would want a female who, for the beginning of each month, would yearn for another male; who could escape death in some cases that would be considered life-threatening to the average human. In other words, no man would love a _freak_.

* * *

Sakura tried desperately to forget her prior conversation with Sasuke so that her training with him would go smoothly and a little less awkward. After retreating from the garden, she indulged herself in some meditation, like Neji had taught her, in hopes of freeing her mind from the pressuring thoughts. She had been worried – worried that she may become dominated, enslaved by the bond.

She looked at her watch again – she had been twenty minutes early, thanks to Kakashi who was needed at the school promptly at eight.

She kicked the dirt on the ground and then walked over to a bench in the stands and seated herself.

'_**May I make a kind suggestion?' **_a familiar voice sounded in Sakura's head, startling her. She took a few seconds to process what was happening before she was able to reply.

'_Azami! You're alright!' _Sakura exclaimed inwardly upon comprehension.

'_**Yes, and I do apologize for worrying you. I always heard you whenever you called out to me in the past, however I decided not to answer because of the recent events that occurred,' **_Azami began to explain, _**'I was scared of what your reaction would be when you found out about the bond, so I couldn't tell you. But the guilt of not doing so was so much that I figured the less we communicated the better. Forgive me.'**_

'_It's alright. What bothers me the most is the 'mating season' thing.'_

'_**You shouldn't worry. Believe it or not, but I've known you since you were born. So I know that you're a strong young girl. When you determine your mind to achieve something, you succeed. I've seen that countless times from you, dear Sakura.'**_

At these words, Sakura felt that her nerves seemed to calm down. The tightness in her chest subsided and the lump in her throat was beginning to disappear.

And when Sasuke arrived, Sakura heard nothing more from Azami. The awkwardness between her and the male had still been present; however it had not been as devastating as before.

Without greeting, Sasuke walked over to one of the benches that were on the dusty field and Sakura followed. Then after smoothly unsheathing the sword he had been carrying at his waist, he carefully placed it upon the wooden surface of the bench and took a step back.

He turned around to meet her face, plastered with curiosity.

"_Like a phoenix, she will rise,  
From the ashes of the fire.  
With crimson hate and a strong desire,  
She will avenge the betrayed empire.  
And with her blood and the power of Kusanagi,  
She will defeat the undead army – the duty of the Prophetic Child…"_

Looking directly into her midnight green depths, he recited part of the Prophecy and on noticing her confused expression; he explained what their training session would be about.

"It clearly implies that you need to know how to wield my sword," he then enlightened before prompting, "Pick it up..."

"Won't it…'repel' me?" Sakura inquired out of uncertainty, remembering what she had found out about the sword on the day she heard the Prophecy.

"It's true that the sword has chosen me to be its wielder and prevents anyone else from touching it," Sasuke began to voice his opinion, "However since the Prophecy stated that you'll use it to end Madara, then there must be an exception."

Sakura nodded. Perhaps he was right.

She stepped toward the weapon on the bench slowly and bent over the object, her hand outstretched to take it into her grasp as she was instructed. And just as her fingertips were about to brush against the sword's hilt –

"Wait," Sasuke commanded and Sakura pulled back and faced him, giving him a questioning look.

"If anything…uncomfortable…happens, let go of it immediately."

She nearly snorted at the sound of his concern and bounced her head rapidly in another nod before resuming her previous actions. She took one glance at Sasuke who had his arms folded across his chest, before taking the weapon into her hand.

And then before she could process another thought, a stinging surge shot through her entire being, causing agony in practically every part of her body. All she could do was scream out. No matter how hard she tried to release the sword, it seemed to be stuck in her grip. No…that was not it – _she_ had been unable to unclench her fist that was made tightly around the hilt. It was as though there had been an invisible and strongly compelling force between her contact with the weapon.

The piercing choir of high-pitched sounds of the electric current deafened her and seemed to overpower her cries.

She did not realize when her body hit the ground, or when Sasuke got to her level and took her into his arms. Her outer body had become numb, but the pain still coursed through her insides, growing by the second…

* * *

**A/N: Hello everyone! I had no idea I would get so many reviews in such a short time and I didn't check my emails until ten minutes ago since I was so busy with school stuff. Thank you all so much. **

**Now I need to let you know that EVERYTHING that happens in this story is linked to Sakura, so it's important that you read every scene. I apologize for not having much SasuSaku, but I can assure you that there will be TONS of it later. **

**This chapter was very crucial in my eyes because I finally feel as though the plot has started. **

**I can't say when the other chapter will be updated…but it's about 10% completed. **

**Once again, I cannot thank you enough and I can't wait to hear your thoughts. **

**-IzWinchesterDevil**

**P.S: For those who tried to guess Yumi's son, I did mention his name in the previous chapter He is Dan, Tsunade's ex-lover from the original series. He may be a minor character now, but later his role will be quite essential to the plot. **


	13. Chapter 13

**DISCLAIMER: **I own **NONE of the original characters** of the Manga/Anime series Naruto – they belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only hold ownership of this plot and **characters unfamiliar to the original Naruto series.**

**Summary: **Long ago, humans had to be cautious of their own being, but now, not only would they have to beware of their own, but the other forms lurking in the dark and even walking amongst us. Fighting against these supernatural beings are the members of the Dark Coven. What will happen when Sakura Haruno, one who greatly despises the supernatural, encounters Sasuke Uchiha, one of the Blood Demons? **Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura with an equal amount of Neji/Tenten. Other pairings are included. Enjoy!**

**WARNING: Vampire Fiction! Please discontinue reading if **_**mild violence, sexual content and aggressive language**_** seem inappropriate to you or is not to your liking! **

**NOTE: **_**'Azami'**_

'_Thoughts' Flashbacks_

Narrator's POV

**~ The Dark Coven ~**

**Chapter Thirteen: The Blade of Kusanagi – Chidori Chokuto **

Her eyes were shut as the never-ending waves of electrifying pain gushed through her inner body. Behind closed eyelids, her vision immediately became a blinding white. She found no physical strength to force her lids open, as though they had been sealed with a magnetic force of some sort.

She was sure that her skin had begun to blister on her body's surface from the burning sensation which she could now feel.

She was screaming in immense agony from the top of her lungs. Or at least she thought she was. Sakura was not sure how much time had gone by, but it was probable that by now her screams had become hoarse and inaudible.

'_Help me! Sasuke!' _was whatshe wanted to shout out so desperately, but her mouth refused form any words.

Suddenly her ears had become filled with an unremitting ringing, shutting off her access to other sounds, even her throaty screams.

She could not make the pain stop. She did not have control of her body. She could not let go of this dangerous weapon no matter how much she encouraged herself to. And all of this left her at one conclusion – she was going to die.

Just like that...

"_So pathetic..." _

The pain was maddening – she was beginning to hear things now.

"_Your way of thinking is just like your former self..."_

The voice was faint...like a raspy whisper. A _sinister_ whisper. And it sounded like a male's.

"_Like a foolish human..."_

Sakura imagined the man whisper again, followed by a quiet chuckle.

"_This isn't your imagination, lowly newborn," _the whisper said to her again.

'_Not imagination?' _she thought, bemused.

He laughed again, cynically this time and a bit more audible.

"_You're so weak that even your thoughts have become fragmented. Pathetic indeed."_

'_Who...?'_

"_What's that? Who am I? Why I thought you'd figure that out by now. What a shame. To think that I even expected __**that**__ of you. Then let me tell you. To the world, I am 'Kusanagi No Tsurugi', however, when in the hands of my master I am known as 'Chidori Chokuto'..."_

'_Ku-Kus-nagi?' _she asked the being in her thoughts, which she had found to be becoming rather difficult.

He scoffed.

"_I must comment on your level of idiocy. Did you __**honestly**__ belief you'd be able to touch me, let alone wield me?"_

He let out another ominous chuckle that almost broke out into a cackle.

"_Idiotic newborn," _he began flatly in the middle of his laugh...like a maniac, _"this is __**not**__ the way you shall wield me!" _

The last of his words were uttered with a growl filled with an immeasurable amount of exasperation that Sakura felt as though it had manifested itself in the power of the current. The parts of her that had not been in too much pain were now affected.

The intensity of it was so extreme, that out of the lunacy she had been driven to, Sakura found herself _wishing_ for her end.

And then slowly, the brightness in her head began to disappear behind shades of gray...

* * *

Sasuke felt an awkward twist in his heart at the sounds of Sakura's blood-curdling cries as he held her distressed form. And though the electrocution had no effect on him, Sasuke was able to measure the extremity of the pain it had inflicted upon Sakura through the intense throbbing in his abdomen that came from the bond mark. It acted as an indicator to alert him that his mate had been in harms way, just has he had expected of it.

Once again, with her upper body writhing in his arms, Sasuke attempted to pry his sword out of her tight grip. And this time, after much more effort than previously, he succeeded.

He felt an invisible heaviness lift off of him, but did not relish too much in his relief and quickly moved her body to the sheltered stands.

"Sakura? Sakura, can you hear me?" he asked with a tinge of panic evident in his voice, only revealing a fraction of how immensely worried and shaken he was. And he did nothing to fight the feeling.

From the looks of things, it appeared that she had fallen unconscious immediately after becoming separated from Kusanagi.

He rested her body on the concrete floor at the foot of the stands, and removed her shoes before placing both feet atop the bench. Keeping her legs elevated was a good way to assist in regaining her proper circulation.

Fishing out a penknife from his pants pocket, he shredded the fabric of her t-shirt down the middle and freed her from her jeans afterward, leaving her in just her undergarments. He tossed the burnt clothing aside and exhaled, rekindling his mind as quickly as he could. He needed to stay focused...or Sakura would surely die.

Once he had fully contained himself, Sasuke placed his index finger under Sakura's nose, at the entrance of her nostrils. Not a trace of air emitted from them.

Placing his palms at the center of her chest, he began to administer CPR. Beads of sweat left moist trails as they ran down his forehead and the sides of his head: the effects of battling with himself to keep calm as well as fear for the worst case scenario. He continued the chest compressions and blowing until she coughed softly and the slightest breath of air had escaped her parted lips and nostrils.

He checked her breathing twice and her heart rate thoroughly before sprinting off to the small first-aid room to find what was needed to treat Sakura's condition. Her heartbeat was weak and there was a possibility that it could decrease if he did not act with haste. Rushing her to the hospital had been entirely out of the question – it would take too long.

After rummaging through the cabinets frantically, with Godspeed, he returned to her limp form with a cooler full of ice packs and another kit containing heat packs. He needed to stimulate her heart action, and figured the best way to do so would be through alternating cold and hot applications to her heart.

First, he applied a heat pack to her chest which had only been covered by her pale, skin-colored, lace bra that he did not seem to notice until now. It also occurred to him that the pain at his stomach had subsided and a feathery ripple of relief flowed through him like the soothing, light wind.

Sasuke removed the heat pack and replaced it with a cold one.

Sakura's condition had been his fault. What had he been thinking, ordering Sakura to touch his sword when he had been aware completely of the consequences? He should have put some more thought into the Prophecy's verse before jumping to such dangerous conclusions. Sakura had nearly lost her life because of his mistake.

He checked her heart rate once more. It was regaining it's usual pace. Still, he continued to apply the hot and cold packs.

Taking a seat beside her still form, Sasuke wiped his sweat-bathed forehead with the back of his palm.

Sakura was fine now. He repeated that, like a mantra in his head as though he needed to convince himself...because it definitely _was_ a close call.

He leaned forward, resting his each of his elbows on his lap, and buried his face in his palms.

"If you can't hold Kusanagi, then how exactly are you going to slay Madara?" he asked the unconscious girl without looking at her...

* * *

"You little _thief_, come _back here_!"

Azami whipped her head around at the boisterous sound of the butcher's voice, booming from the front of the shed. Then her eyes found the skinny little boy ducking under the table and dashing out of the meat shed with a piece of blood-covered meat tightly held in his arms, enough to feed only one person.

She became startled when the butcher grabbed hold of a wooden chisel hammer and proceeded after the boy. Afraid that the child would get injured by the butcher's hand, she hurried after them. They had not gotten very far and even until the time she had caught up with them, no one had intervened.

"Stop it!" she yelled at the older man who now had the boy in his grasp.

The butcher paid no heed to her shouts, but it certainly raised the attention of the people around her.

As the butcher was about to flog the child, Azami pulled him away from the stronger man's grasp and shielded his fragile body with hers, waiting to feel the agonizing smack of the thick wood against her small back.

But it never came.

She opened her eyes that had been tightly shut and slowly turned around.

She was met with fabric and the pleasant, earthy smell of forest and rain.

It took a moment to realize that someone else had taken the blow in her stead.

"Are you alright?" the person asked. No sign of agony or strain was hinted in his deep, masculine voice.

"Y-Yes," she answered before asking him the same question.

Instead of responding to her, he turned to the butcher who was now wearing an astonished look on his face. And looking directly into the butcher's eyes he said, "You're a fool for using this method to punish the child for his wrong doing. Your actions would have resulted in his death which is punishable also by death."

The older man said nothing.

Azami's eyes moved from the tall, young man with long dark hair that reached a small length past his shoulders, to the butcher. The latter looked pale with fright and was wide-eyed. At some point he had dropped the hammer.

"Forgive me," the butcher said to the younger male, bowing his head in shame and his body shaking with terror.

"_I'm_ not the one you should be begging for forgiveness," the man replied and faced Azami and the little boy who was still in her embrace, "_They_ are."

Quickly the man turned to her and the boy and dropped to his knees and bowed his head to their feet before pledging his apology and pleading for forgiveness.

"If you had harmed the child, I would have not accepted your apology nor would I have forgiven you," Azami told the butcher. She said nothing else. She could not bring herself to understand how the man who had saved her and the boy could have possibly triggered such fear from the butcher who was by far, bigger in body size than he was.

"Are you alright?" she asked the child who nodded in reply. The meat was still in his arms, staining his clothes.

Azami got to the child's level, kneeling down on one knee and placed a hand on each of his shoulders.

"What's your name?" she asked the child.

"Nakamura Akihito," the boy answered.

"Akihito-chan, it's wrong to steal. Why did you do it?" she asked gently.

"It's for Obaa-san [Grandmother]. She's sick and there's hardly anything for her to eat."

"Hmm…well, why don't you come over to my house and I'll make something delicious for you to take to her," Azami suggested and Akihito agreed.

Azami smiled at Akihito and stood up to face their savior who had been watching the two as they conversed, in silence.

"Thank you for helping us…?"

"Itachi," he supplied.

"Thank you very much, Itachi-san," Azami expressed once again, bowing respectfully. "You must have taken a rather hard hit there. Please don't act so irrational next time, Itachi-san."

"Your actions were also imprudent. You could've gotten seriously injured, _Lady."_

"My name is Azami," she provided and added, "If my actions saved this boy, my injury would have been worth it. Do take care, Itachi-san."

Azami had never seen Itachi around the district before, but did not press him with any questions. She knew nothing of him and decided it was best to leave it that way. Any lesser woman would do exactly the opposite and be trapped by the charm secluded in his stern demeanor, his deep voice and other well-defined masculine features, but she was one with a sense of pride and decency.

* * *

Her eyes remained closed as her dream became overpowered by darkness and reality had begun to surface her thoughts. Slowly Sakura began to recollect the events that had occurred prior to her slumber. The tenderness on the surface of her skin reminded her that she had previously been exposed to physical torment. The parts of her body that were most tender – her hands, arms and legs – were marred with faint blisters of pink and purple. And then she remembered it all happened prior to picking up Sasuke's sword.

When her mind registered the awkward position she felt her body was in, her eyes fluttered open and the ceiling of the spectator shed came into view. Her eyes widened when they traveled down to her naked legs, and when the wind blew in, she realized that she could feel its invisible, soft texture against her skin more than usual, finally drawing her attention to the fact that she had been almost _completely_ naked. And naturally, she gasped at the sudden realization.

"So you're finally awake," she heard a bored voice say beside her, "You talk in your sleep. It's annoying."

Both startled and embarrassed, Sakura swiftly threw her legs off the seat, almost tumbling over in the process. And once she had caught control of body's motion, Sakura scampered backwards, distancing her naked form away from Sasuke who looked on with a raised brow as she defensively brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them in a poor attempt to cover the exposed areas of her body.

He opened his mouth to comment on her behavior; however Sakura kept him silent with a string of irritating questions.

"Why am I like this! What did you do to me! Where are my clothes!"

And finally she added just as his lips had parted once again to utter words, "Stop looking at me! Turn around!"

She hugged herself tighter and he saw her throat move when she gulped.

"Why? There's nothing eye catching about you. In fact, you possess a keen resemblance to a stick figure."

Sakura stared at the pale skinned man, her eyes beginning to bulge out of their lids. She was conflicted in choosing to laugh off the Uchiha's aberrant and stale joke, or castrate him for paying attention to her body even for a moment.

Instead, Sakura chose to deal with the more important matters.

"Where are my clothes?"

"In the corner...and unusable," he answered with the same tone of monotony as before.

She looked to where he had directed, silently questioning what he had meant by 'unusable' and found that he meant exactly what the word was used to describe: something that could no longer serve the purpose for which it had been made.

From a distance she noticed the cut down the middle of her t-shirt and the ones down both legs of her denim pants.

She whipped her head around in fury and glared at the stoic male.

"Sasuke! What did you do to my clothes!"

"Again with the questions," he complained and gave a straightforward explanation – which consisted of solely one sentence – of what had happened.

"How long was I out?" she asked when he had finished.

"About three hours," he responded, removing his jacket before getting to her level and ungracefully shoved it to her face. Sakura wrapped her fingers around the stiff fabric.

He kept his eyes away from her partially nude figure and when he felt Sakura's hold on the material, he released it.

She noticed how he seemed to be giving her some privacy, unlike before, as she stood up to clothe herself with the small article.

Firmly grabbing the railings near the bench, Sakura pulled herself onto her feet which felt tingly against the concrete ground, like a sensation of pins and needles. She still had not gained full recovery from the electrocution, and thinking back at the pain, she wondered how she even managed to survive the ordeal at all.

Sakura slowly released the railing in a cautious manner, aware of her body's condition, but despite her wariness, as she attempted to throw the fabric over her shoulders, her knees bucked together and suddenly she no longer felt even the slightest bit of support from them.

Upon instinct, Sakura reached for the railing again despite her hazy vision, but before her hand could even brush against the cold metal, she felt a familiar hold on her waist and was temporarily taken back to the memory of nearly stumbling over flat on her face at the funeral. Only this time, Sasuke's bare skin was pressed firmly against hers as he tightened his grip around her naked stomach.

Her mind had every determination to break away, but it seemed as though at that moment its connection with her body had somehow become nonexistent. Every fiber of her being seemed to be frozen. Except her mind which, on the other hand had been racing with unfathomable nonsense.

Through the thin fabric of his shirt, Sakura felt the precise curves of the muscles that created Sasuke's chest and abdomen, against her bare back. And she could feel the rise and fall of his well-sculpted chest which emitted the warm breath of air down her neck. And it seemed to grow heavier, his breathing. His temperature seemed to rise with every breath, but not enough to melt the invisible ice that held her rooted to the ground.

Her body was not her own. Or was this a test?

Sakura had been told that Purebloods were seductively irresistible. So much that simply one glance at them would have a female of any race enchanted until their last breath. Because of their impeccable attributes, Purebloods were certain to have a constant supply of nourishment.

This was _definitely_ a test, one which she was uncertain of the outcome since her actions had proven to contradict her scarcely sensible thoughts.

When her mind had urged her to break Sasuke's hold she only desired to lean into him more; to feel the sparse warmth that came from him; to permit his hands to explore every inch of her body in the most _sinful_ manner.

When she thought of asking him to release her, Sakura found that she was only able to meet his gaze, and nothing else. No words came from her already parted and moist lips. And she gave no reaction other than attraction towards the sinister sea of red that replaced the depthless onyx of his eyes.

Sakura remained in that position – looking up into his spellbinding eyes, feeling the inexplicable physical lure towards Sasuke, the queer longing that almost made her tremble and forget pride and strength altogether.

Even when he spoke, she remained enchanted.

"Why aren't you moving away?"

The words escaped his amply thin lips, sounding more like a strained demand rather than a question, but his voice less harsh than usual.

When she failed to respond in time, he added, "What is it you..._want_?"

'_You,' _she thought immediately, unaware that her judgment was becoming swayed.

"Don't even bother to answer that," he whispered with an angered growl, violently spinning her around to face him directly. "This was a test. And seeing as how you made no attempt to free yourself from me, you've certainly failed it!"

The way his voice suddenly raised at the last sentence triggered a fright within her which seemed to pull her out of the depths of the trance and acknowledge the death grip Sasuke had on her arms.

"What are you doing?" she managed when her mind became a little more stabled.

"So you've finally come back to your senses," he derided and Sakura continued to stare at him with wide, perplexed eyes.

"I hope you've realized, Sakura, that you can't escape this feeling even though you've already become aware of it. The mating time is drawing nearer and you are too weak to resist your selfish, uncontrollable desires. You've shown me that much."

What in the world was he saying?

Sasuke questioned himself. Although he had been mindful that _even his_ power of will had been almost completely putrefied, Sasuke landed all of the blame on Sakura. At some point, he was uncertain whether his words were even correctly stringed together or if they only haphazardly left his lips, failing to properly convey his thoughts.

_Fear. _

He was hesitant to admit it, but coming to terms with himself, Sasuke acknowledged the feeling that caused the slight shivers and the hollow pit within his system, to be sheer trepidation.

But what exactly had he been so terrified about? What in the world could possibly reduce a powerful, intrepid and collected Uchiha to the likes of a mere human child?

A being of greater or equal caliber, of course. And that being was none other than _himself_.

Under an impassive mask, Sasuke Uchiha was afraid that he had almost made the biggest mistake of his entire length of existence thus far. Without knowing, he had allowed his body to respond to Sakura's reactions. He had been on the verge of ripping away the small fragments of clothing that covered the more desirable places of her body. But before his mind had could wholly given in to the insanity, Sasuke thought about his brother and Azami. He let the few memories of chance glances of them he would have caught in the past, flash in his mind – especially the ones where Azami would have that radiant smile plastered across her face, looking at his brother.

With a violent tug Sasuke took his jacket out of Sakura's clutches and with haste, helped her into it.

"I'll warn you one last time: until we are certain that the mating period is over, _keep away_ from me," he murmured to her as he fastened a few of the buttons on the jacket so that her alluring attributes became fully hidden from his shamefully lustful eyes.

She remained wordless and unmoved as Sasuke's hand gently flattened the disheveled areas of the fabric at her shoulders.

"Do you think you can walk properly now?" he asked her with a minute fraction of concern sounding in his voice.

She nodded and followed him when he began to walk.

His pace was slow like a stroll. It gave Sakura the impression that he was being considerate of her injuries and the numbness she still felt in her legs. His unusual gestures made her curious. Was this his way of apologizing for the electrocution? Or maybe he was simply showing the sensible side of him. Sakura would expect that living a long life such as his would provide more than sufficient time to learn and mature, so Sasuke could never always be as conceited as she thought he was, a few weeks ago.

But what about her?

Sakura shifted her attention to herself – her behavior not too long ago. She cringed at the memory of her disgraceful conduct.

"_The mating time is drawing nearer and you are too weak to resist your selfish, uncontrollable desires. You've shown me that much..."_

She pondered at Sasuke's words long enough to realize that he had been nothing but absolutely right. Yesterday he was not simply taunting her by telling her that she would be no match to resist the mating period. Now she had seen his point. He had only been logical and she had refused to look at it in that way until now.

Just now she had unquestionably no control over her actions – as though her mind had been driven solely by irrepressible _lust_.

"Why should you feel the need to test me, if you're so strong enough to stop my actions?" she found herself suddenly asking, thoughtlessly.

She regretted her words as soon as they left her lips, because immediately after she uttered them, Sasuke came to an abrupt stop. She expected him to turn to face her, wearing a lethal glare, but instead he kept in place.

"I have no desire to make any mistakes, Sakura Haruno. Betraying my brother is something that has never existed in my thoughts and never will. Therefore I'll do everything in my power to keep my control during the mating season; and I trust that you will do as I ask."

She could hear the frustrating tension in his voice. He sounded pained...and almost _fearful_. She wondered why she had not caught onto it earlier.

"What are you talking about? Your brother? What does Itachi have to do with this?" Sakura found the courage to ask. It was his fault for being so vague. Somehow she felt that she would get no response out of him this time. And she had been right.

"It's not my place to discuss this with you."

* * *

The drive to the mansion had been fairly unproductive. Sasuke maintained an awkward silence during the entire trip, leaving Sakura to her own thoughts. Her eyes never left her reflection in the car window. For most of the time, she inwardly berated herself for allowing her body to mindlessly react to Sasuke's mere presence in such a lewd manner.

Disgusted by herself, she huffed almost inaudibly and tore her gaze from her mirrored image; missing Sasuke's observant eyes in the rear view mirror.

Attempting to shove the embarrassing memory somewhere where it would soon become forgotten, Sakura decided to focus her thoughts on Sasuke's sword. She was unsure if it was a part of a dream during her sleep or madness brought about by the excruciating pain of the current.

Whatever it had been – reality or imagination – the _sword_ had spoken to her!

"_Idiotic newborn, this is not the way you shall wield me!"_

She remembered its words distinctly.

Wondering if it was the right time to discuss what she had heard – or _thought_ she had heard – Sakura let her gaze fall upon Sasuke who was seated in front of her on the driver's side. But then the look of concentration he had been wearing reminded her of the emotions his tone held in the last words he spoke to her at the training grounds.

Since then he said nothing to her. Not even at the hospital when he carried her for a quick examination and treatment for her minor wounds.

With nothing else to think about, her thoughts unconsciously fell upon the dream she had of Azami and Itachi. There was nothing much to decipher from it; only that it illustrated how the two most likely had met. The bond between them must have grown resilient – so strong that only death was able to separate them.

'_A bond called love,' _she thought, wondering what the experience was like.

But what if their bond had never been severed? After all, Azami's soul resided within her.

Sakura's train of thought came to a rushed halt when the keys clicked, turning off the ignition. They had arrived home, finally.

Sasuke exited the vehicle first, grabbing the bag of meds which Tsunade had prescribed for Sakura. By the time he had gotten over to Sakura's side, she had already exited the vehicle.

"Do you think you can manage? The medicine Tsunade injected into your system should have begun to take effect by now," he suggested as she proceeded to walk.

As if on cue, just as Sasuke had finished speaking, Sakura saw the driveway swirl, causing her to lose her footing when she approached the short flight of stairs. But like her knight in shining armor, Sasuke had caught her just in time.

Strangely, the thought got a smile out of her. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Though this time, instead of merely helping her regain her traction Sasuke swept her into his arms in a bridal style. His actions earn a surprised gasp from her, followed by a questioning glare. But Sasuke remained unspoken, regarding her intently as he expertly paced up the four steps.

Sakura was not sure why she even cared to remember, but once before, their gazes had been locked like this. She knew not what thoughts lurked within his mind as he held her gaze, but she had been aware of hers.

Most had been questions: questions which only he could provide the answers to. For once she wanted to talk to him with the absence of sourness, hate and distrust in her mind.

Gradually, as her eyes began to feel heavy, the vision of his captivating, charcoal eyes started to narrow until they disappeared behind the darkness of her lids. She had not been totally inebriated by sleep, but as her head became lighter, she allowed it to comfortably rest just above Sasuke's chest.

And the faint beating of a heart slowly lulled her off to a sea of nonsensical thoughts.

_A heart beat_.

Somewhere in the far-off place her mind had now drifted, Sakura was unsure of whether it turned out to be a conjured thought or escaped words...

"You have a heartbeat..."

* * *

"You have a heartbeat..."

At the sound of Sakura's mumbling, Sasuke looked down to see the female fast asleep against his chest. The medicine had finally taken full effect.

He was not certain of what to make of her words. Was it a question or a statement of realization? Though her speech had been slurred, it appeared to him to sound more like the latter.

Did she always think that vampires were literally heartless?

Sasuke smirked at Sakura's unreasonable thought as he ascended the stairs that led to the large wooden door that was mansion's entrance. How childish of her. Could she not feel her own heartbeat?

Or perhaps she had only been referring to _him_? He dismissed the thought as quickly as it had appeared in his mind. He knew he had always been harsh towards her, but that was the way he wanted their relationship to be.

In order to keep in check; to keep _him_ in his place; in order to keep _him_ on a tight leash, it _had_ to be that way...so that she would remain bitter towards him.

He had never allowed himself to think about it again, but earlier, when he had first encountered Sakura his mind and body had some sort of invisible attraction to her. He immediately became overwhelmed with an inexplicable thirst for her blood. Little by little his mind became overtaken by masses of unruly, corrupted thoughts.

And the most intolerable part was that he was unable to oppress those thoughts and feelings _despite_ seeing and knowing that she was the _exact_ embodiment of his brother's fiancée.

It had taken a copious amount of his willpower to control himself, but in the end it was worth the effort – now he did not require that amount of self-control, however some of it was indeed needed.

Unlike he had thought Sasuke was able to open the door to the mansion effortlessly although his hands had been _very much_ occupied. Fortunately for him, the electronic access had been a little below where his right hand had been positioned as he held Sakura, and he was easily able to enter the password which permitted him to enter the building.

Immediately as he stepped into the foyer, he ran into Itachi who seemed to be heading out.

"What happened?" Itachi spoke first, with a great amount of concern. Sasuke also did not fail to notice the worry in his older brother's eyes as they scanned the lifeless female vampire in his arms.

The very same look he would bear for Azami whenever she had experienced nausea from her pregnancy.

"We'll talk after you take her to her room," Itachi added before stepping aside to allow Sasuke to proceed to the living room and up the stairs.

She did not stir as he carefully placed her at the center of her queen sized bed. The air conditioning was off so he decided not to cover her with the quills; and without a sound, he retreated out into the hallway.

For the first time, Sasuke felt reluctant to meet his brother.

Perhaps it had been his imagination; however he felt a thick tension, loitering in the air as he entered Itachi's study. When his eyes found said male, he had been sitting at his desk, appearing untailored as ever with a book in hand.

It was only when the older Uchiha's eyes rose to meet his, had Sasuke confirmed the opposite.

Looking at the onyx gaze that had been aged with experience, Sasuke caught the icy seriousness they held, _questioning_ him.

And without delay, he explained the chain of events.

For the entire time, Itachi continuously regarded him. And when he had concluded, he said to him, irritated, "That was rather careless of you."

"Why did you not discuss your idea with me before acting on it? Sakura is a very important asset to this war. Losing her before the battle even starts will be a major crisis, Sasuke."

Itachi may not have realized, but the fear in his voice as he reprimanded him had not been hidden too well; and Sasuke wondered miserably why those obvious and trivial emotions that hinted his brother's feelings bothered him for even a moment.

"I asked you a question Sasuke."

The reminder seemed colder than his words before and Sasuke assumed that he must have appeared oblivious since Itachi repeated the question.

"Did anything you had expected, happen?"

"No. You're right. I should have been more careful. It won't happen again," Sasuke swore to his older sibling with much sincerity, hoping that it was enough for him to be forgiven. Although Itachi had denied it earlier, Sasuke had seen the evidence that his brother harbored feelings for Sakura.

And that mere fact had been powerful enough to give life to the most unfathomable, aggravating sensation that seemed to callously slash at his insides.

"Is something the matter, Sasuke?" he heard Itachi say, pulling him out of his swirl of thoughts.

"There seems to be something on your mind," his brother added more precisely.

"That's right," Sasuke said, seating himself near Itachi's desk. "The note Dan gave me at the cemetery – have you made anything of it yet?"

Although the matter had not currently been on his mind, it seemed of more importance that what was, and decided that now would be best to discuss it.

"'_The__ child must not be born otherwise the one to whom you've sworn fidelity must be unaware,'" _Itachi recited before adding, "I'm not certain of what it really means. 'The one to whom you've sworn fidelity' can be anyone."

"Do you think Dan is worth paying attention to?" Sasuke asked. After all the man did betray the organization, therefore his rights for giving such a warning were questionable.

"We shouldn't completely ignore it; only keep it at the back of our minds," the older Uchiha suggested. "There is something I'd like to ask you, though."

The latter of Itachi's words sounded suspecting, gaining Sasuke's full attention. However his eyes showed no sign of distrust, only neutralism.

"Is Karin pregnant?"

To say that Sasuke had been taken aback at the question would be an understatement. And he was certain that his regular, expressionless façade had become completely shattered. It was never in Itachi's nature to ask such a question although the brothers had comfortably discussed women in the past.

"No. I'm certain she isn't," Sasuke responded after clearing his throat, earning an amused, low chuckle from his brother. Karin's pregnancy by him had been entirely impossible since they had never indulged in sexual activity while he had been in his True Form.

"Why did you ask?" Sasuke managed, awkwardly.

"Because Dan's note speaks of a child and might I remind, he handed it to _you_," Itachi explained.

Satisfied with explanation, Sasuke left his brother's study with the intention of having a solo training session he believed was greatly needed to relieve his mind off the burdensome emotions and events from before.

Moving down the corridor, Sasuke could see the door to Sakura's room. He eyed it fixedly as he drew nearer. It had been closed – just as he had left it before.

Sasuke tore his eyes away from the entrance to where the female resided as he swept past it, but found himself slowing once he did. Soon he stopped in his tracks, contemplating. Or was it temptation?

He cursed at the idea that he could not bring himself to trust his own thoughts. No one had ever had that effect on a being of his competence.

Nonetheless he turned around, and without further hesitation he entered Sakura's chambers.

* * *

Contrasting to what Sasuke had expected, the sight of the female vampire brought his mind to peace. In fact it appeared that the entire room was calming – perhaps an influence of her mere presence?

He looked on at her from a distance, afraid that if he had gone any closer he would give in to the immoral temptations that would whisper to his thoughts so suddenly. Like a silently forceful command.

Even from afar he could see the manifestation of serenity on every contour that constructed her face.

In his eyes, Sakura was the definition of beauty.

The darker shade of pink on her lips complimented the lighter color of her hair. And against the apple green bedding, her scattered locks painted a sense of spring – his mother's favorite season.

But this beauty was not for him. She was the re-embodiment of Azami – the woman his brother found first.

And a woman Sasuke initially felt no attraction to.

Then why? What difference did Sakura have from Azami that compelled him to be so drawn to her?

* * *

When dawn came the next day, Tsunade paid a visit to the organization's mansion to check on Sakura. The child had still been asleep, just as she had expected. In order to fully recover from her ordeal, Sakura would require much rest. And knowing Sakura's level of obduracy, the essential amount of rest would never be attained unless Tsunade had given her the injection.

After a brief examination, Tsunade met with the other members who had gathered in the living room.

"How is she?" Ino asked, at the sight of Tsunade.

"Perfect. She should awaken by this evening," the older woman assured with a warm smile.

"There's something I came to tell you additionally," Tsunade continued to address them all, "As most of you here are aware, Danzo usually holds a gala to annually commemorate the founding of the organization. This year the gala will be held at his mansion on his private island, one day from now. Everyone in this household is welcomed to attend and he'd greatly appreciate if Sakura would as well. I know she doesn't associate too well with vampires, so I'd like to ask that you try your utmost to convince her."

"What's the theme!" Ino exclaimed with excitement.

"Oh sorry...I forgot to mention that it's a "Black and White Gala'," Tsunade answered.

"Tenten, Temari!" Ino called, "We need to start shopping for dresses!"

An audible sigh was heard from Shikamaru.

"I swear...no one has energy that can match up to Ino's," he remarked in a dull tone.

"Nope, I believe you're wrong, bro," Kiba replied, eyeing the blonde girl as she literally bounced on spot, "Ino is only second when you compare her to _Naruto_."

"Ino, I'm sorry," Tenten interjected, silencing the overjoyed blonde, prying her arm out of the girl's hold, "Shopping isn't my thing. And I'd like to arrange for my dress on my own."

"Okay..." Ino answered, deflated, shooting a puzzled glance at Temari who shrugged in response.

"Excuse me," Tenten said solidly and exited the room.

* * *

With eyes sweeping across the empty foyer, Tenten ensured that she had been out of earshot before making the call.

At the third ring, the call was answered.

"Matsuri, I need you to get me a white dress – one that's easy to move in," Tenten spoke into her mobile phone. The younger vampire on the other line did not question her, although Tenten had been certain of the child's curious mind.

"_How soon do you need it, nee-chan?" _she asked instead.

"I want it by tomorrow. It seems that I've landed in the right place. Very soon my life-long goal will be completed. I'll pick up the dress tomorrow."

When the call ended, Tenten placed her phone in the depths of her pants pocket and turned to return into the living room, only to become faced with a masculine chest, then the brooding, pupil-less eyes of Neji Hyuuga.

Trying to mask her surprise, Tenten decided to act casual but silently wondered if he had heard anything.

"Is there something you need?" she asked, her tone constant and calm.

"No. I was just leaving," was all he said.

But there was something about his voice that hinted to her that he knew more than he had let on. Even if he had not heard anything, she was certain that he _suspected_ her. After her near-death encounter with a Hyuuga many years ago, Tenten became well aware of how observant they were; as well as their formidability and lethal fighting skills.

Placing a hand over her chest, she silently hoped that the Hyuuga, who had inflicted such a dreadful wound upon her, was still alive.

So that she could return the favor...

* * *

Tenten gazed through the large open space between the ceiling and the sculptured banisters that enclosed the balcony, offering a perfect view over the compound's labyrinth-like garden. She watched as the continuous droplets made puddles of water on the bed of soil below as she leaned against the wall and concrete railing.

She hated Seattle because of this. It rained here more than she could handle, rekindling the feelings in which she wished to drown, that would usually only happen on her birthday. That overwhelming sadness and loneliness she became ill-fated with ever since the day she had been born.

Only on days like this when she had been granted solitude, Tenten would allow her mask to fade, and freely wear her feelings in her eyes. Though Neji had already sensed her suspicious intentions, Tenten did not want to ruin her opportunities by revealing her true self to anyone else in the organization. So she would wait until she was away from the eyes of the Dark Coven members before letting her tears escape...

* * *

_1317, Japan._

Tenten's eyes lingered at that spot where the moonlight peeped through the trees that framed the walkway. She looked on at how the moon's light made the drizzling rain appear like falling snow. It always rained on this day, so she never felt alone when mourning.

The shogi door slid open behind her.

"I think you should come inside, Tenten," her Aunt Aoshika said to her. Her voice was soft and more dispirited than usual. The sadness it held was heavy.

"Oba (Aunt)...I think I want to stay out here until the rain stops," Tenten told the woman, not removing her eyes from rain in the moon's glow. She heard footsteps come toward her.

"You know it won't stop until dawn," Aoshika tried to reason with her, but Tenten did not provide any form of response.

"I see," Aoshika continued when the girl said nothing, "You mean to stay here until the time for your mourning passes."

Then without another word, Aoshika turned to return into the small house.

"Don't go."

She stopped moving at the thirteen year's old request.

"I want a clear picture of the day I was born. I want to know what my parents were like," the child stated when she was aware that Aoshika did not leave.

A gush of cold wind blew in their direction, carrying droplets of water with it, splattering against their faces.

When Aoshika remained silent, Tenten added, "All these years, you've been telling me that on this day, thirteen years ago, my parents and their clans were massacred. But that's all I know. You've never spoken about them. Yet I feel this...indescribable sadness that I'm unable to explain each year of my birthday..."

It was strange indeed. But Tenten always leaned on the fact that she longed for her parents' love because Aoshika did nothing to fill that empty space. And Tenten understood her aunt's feelings. Aoshika considered that to be the role solely of her mother and father and by taking up their duties, she would be disrespecting their souls.

However, she needed some sort of excuse to pry any form of information about her parents from her grieving aunt.

Aoshika took a seat on the wooden floor, opposite to Tenten and stared at the moistened earth on the small pathway that led to the exit of their secluded, small compound.

"As you know it, the night of the massacre was the night you were born. It all happened so suddenly and I don't know what took place on the outside because during the entire time, I was with your mother, Ji-sama..."

***.*.***

_Thirteen Years Ago, Japan._

_Upon entering the corridor which led to the heiress' room, Aoshika heard the sounds of faint whimpering that had been muffled by the wooden walls. At even intervals along the wide hall, pairs of female guards – each of which consisted of one member from the Shimizu Clan and one from the Fujikage Clan – were aligned to secure the area. Under the dim light produced by the torches along the walls, their faces were visibly expressionless, but she knew that they were all not in the least bit unaware of their surroundings. _

_Upon arriving at the room, Aoshika slid open the wooden framed shogi door, with much quietness and care as she steadily held the bamboo crafted bowl of warm water. Her eyes traveled to the female Noble Vampire, resting her very pregnant body on the thick futon mattress. _

"_Izumi-san told me that the seal has been complete, Ji-sama. Would you like to begin moving to the tunnels now?" Aoshika asked the heiress of the Shimizu Clan. _

"_Iie...I'm not quite ready yet. We'll move when the time draws nearer." _

_Aoshika nodded and placed the bowl of water on a nearby stool at the foot of the futon. _

_Suddenly there was a thunderous echo that sent vigorous tremors through the earth, causing the bowl to topple over, splashing its contents all over the polished floor. _

_Not taking too long to register that the sound had belonged to an explosion, Aoshika rushed to Ji who had already begun to stand up. _

"_Something's wrong," Ji said to her as she helped her, "Where's Chojiro?" _

_Before Aoshika could begin to respond, said male rushed through the entrance, bearing a worried look. _

_Without hesitation, he commanded, "Aoshika-san, take Ji the tunnels. The compound is being attacked." _

_The male, clad in a black hakama and matching haori coat assisted in quickly helping the pregnant female into the hallway. _

"_Who's responsible for the infiltration and the attacks? And what's their motive?" Ji asked her mate. Another explosion shook the grounds and the sounds of various battle cries were heard from outside. The scent of smoke was now slowly beginning to waft its way into the main building. _

"_We have no clue as to who is leading this attack, but there is a high possibility that they're either here to assassinate you or to retrieve scrolls," he said to her when they stopped at the middle of the hallway. _

_After a minute of deep thought, Aoshika was able to reason with Chojiro's speculation. Shimizu Ji was the Shimizu Clan's feared Ketsueki No Shikaku – a vampire born thirty years after the death of his predecessor, with the ability to arrange the particles contained in pure or impure water to form its three states: solid, liquid and gas. Therefore, she possessed the skill to control the flow of blood in any container since it contained many water particles. To the clan and many others, she and the Ketsueki No Shikaku before her, were considered an incredibly formidable weapon. _

_However, the moment a female Ketsueki No Shikaku is at its weakest point is during childbirth and with that taken into consideration, Chojiro's first theory seemed legit. And seeing that the Uchiha had given the duty of keeping record and the protection of Komagata Yumi's predictions – most of which were of utmost importance – it was highly probable that Chojiro's second theory had been true as well._

_Though, as soon as she had rationalized the last theory, she easily debunked it, recalling the fact that no one outside of the two clans had been aware of Ji's pregnancy. Both side had taken careful decisions that this event had been rather risky and felt that it was wise to be discreet about it – even from the Uchiha Clan. _

_Chojiro turned to his pregnant mate and resting his hands on her two shoulders, he leaned closer to her face and whispered, "Reach the designated spot safely. Once I've taken control of the situation and successfully defeated the enemy, I shall meet you and our child in the tunnels."_

"_You're not coming with me?" _

"_Ji...I can't leave your father and the other clan members to face this on their own. I am the leader of the Fujikage Clan which has sworn alliance with your clan and therefore in order to uphold that alliance, I must join them."_

"_I understand," she replied in that signature soft and graceful tone of hers. And then she watched as the male Pureblood Vampire swept down the hall and turned the corner, heading for the exit. _

_Not long after, Aoshika and Ji began to journey down another corridor, accompanied by six of the guards. Once they had reached the far end of the hall, one of the guards lifted the end of the carpet that adorned the floor, revealing a trap door. Raising the door, they were met with a dimly lit staircase which led further beneath the building. _

_Two of the guards entered first, cautiously to lead the way and ward off any possible enemy that could have obstructed the way and endanger the heiress and her unborn child. Another pair of guards followed behind Aoshika and Ji while the other two remained above to prevent any unauthorized vampires from discovering and entering the tunnels._

_Very few had known about their destination; however it did not pay to be more prepared than sorry. _

_Their destination was a secret chamber – an open, circular space supported by seven thick, tall stone pillars. The area was known to the Shimizu Clan as the Birthing Chamber where the previous female Ketsueki No Shikaku had given birth to their offspring. The place was only known to a few trusted guards of the clan as well as the clan's leader – Shimizu-sama, his consort and the clan's advisors. _

_However at the moment, Shimizu-sama was above ground, orchestrating defense forces and protecting his people along with the Scared Scrolls the Shimizu Clan had taken full responsibility over for eons._

_The moment they arrived at the chamber, Ji began to experience more severe pains. The time for the child's birth had finally come. _

_At the center of a heptagonal shaped seal constructed with ancient symbols, Ji laid on a futon dressed in a loose-fitted white cotton kimono with her legs apart. At each point on the outside of the heptagon Aoshika sat cross-legged along with the four guards who had provided protection along the way and two of the clan's advisors. Each of them maintained a steady flow of chakra throughout the seal so that the unconscious energy that had been emitting from Ji would become canceled and the child would safely be brought into the world of the living. _

_The labour went on for about an hour, after which a healthy female baby noble vampire had been born. In between the sounds of the vampires screaming out in pain, fear and victory; the faint echoes of metal clashing against metal and the roaring explosions, the baby's crying seemed to break some of the tension that smothered the peace in the atmosphere. _

_Aoshika watched with a softened gaze as the new mother held her newborn daughter in her arms._

"_Have you thought of a name, Ji-sama?" Advisor Kiyoshi asked the heiress. _

"_Hai. She will be called Tenten Shimizu." _

_Not long after, Ji handed little Tenten to Aoshika who shot her superior a confused look._

"_Hand me my sword," Ji said to one of the guards. _

"_Where do you think you're going, child? You know that for all vampires, regeneration takes a more lengthy time after giving birth. If you go out there a single wound from the enemy can be fatal to you and you don't have enough chakra to use the power as the Ketsueki No Shikaku." Advisor Kiyoshi demanded._

"_I know...but Otou-sama, Kaa-sama and Chojiro are out there along with the other clan members. I won't just sit here and wait," Ji stated firmly before turning back to Aoshika. _

"_Cousin, for now I'll place Tenten in your care. You cannot remain here...it's too risky, so I suggest you all start moving. Travel west until you've crossed the Western Border. There should be a small cave somewhere near a shrine – wait inside for me to return. If I don't return by dawn, it will mean that the enemy has claimed my life and you must continue journeying until you are as far away as possible from the danger..." _

_Averting her dark eyes back to her baby daughter seeing that no one had anything to ask or add, she gently ran her thumb across the child's full cheek and whispered, "Little Tenten...if I fail to return, please forgive okaa-san..." _

***.*.***

"And as you know it...your mother never returned," Aoshika said softly, however Tenten caught the slight tremble in her voice.

A gush of cold wind caused the trees to dance and curtsey to each other.

"While escaping our enemies, Advisor Kiyoshi and Advisor Chie sacrificed their lives to prevent us from meeting our deaths. When I reached the shrine with you hidden in my arms I placed you in the care of a priestess and returned to the Shimizu Compound out of curiosity and a little bit of hope that...my cousin had survived. There I encountered my coward brother who told me that he had seen the heartless massacre's conductor, but when I questioned him about the assassin, he refused to tell me and fled. I searched for your mother and father's bodies and was unsuccessful. So instead, I picked up your mother's beloved Koto and some of her clothes and scented powders...thinking that you had the right to remember her through her important items. I found nothing of your father's, unfortunately."

Tenten wrestled with the sob that fought to escape her throat. But she could not prevent the tears. As soon as one escaped from each eye, another was born in her moist depths. And when the droplets began to fall from her pale cheeks to the wooden floor, the downpour increased, the uproar heightening as the raindrops fell upon the roof. The heavens were mourning with her. The loss she suffered was immeasurable like the capacity of water that came from the skies.

'_Give them back,' _she pleaded to the moon, glowing in all its silver glory. _'How can you take them away from me when I've never gotten the chance to even meet them? Give them back!'_

* * *

_The Dark Coven Mansion, Present._

Neji carefully lifted the large suitcase out of the car's trunk and then, with his free hand, gently slammed the trunk shut. He handed the luggage carrier to the female standing beside him, casting a reserved look in her direction as he did.

"I've gotten permission from father, brother," Hinata answered her cousin's silent question with firm assurance. Neji was never one to verbally question the Hyuuga Heiress or the remaining main members of the Hyuuga Household, however he would usually resound the questions in his head. And when he did, Hinata would see them in his eyes.

"I'm only staying for one week until exams are over," she added, elongating the bag's handles. Ino had missed school a few times since she had been required on a few missions, so Hinata had agreed to help her study.

"Hn..."

Neji waited until Hinata had made it inside the building before walking around to the exterior of the driver's side of his black Audi sedan. Before opening the door, he ran a quick scan with his gifted eyes around the compound like would usually do to ensure that there had been nothing out of the ordinary.

When his eyes landed upon the balcony, his brows became knitted in a frown of interest – deep interest.

She was leaning on the banisters wearing a far-flung expression as she gazed out at the moon? Or perhaps the rain? He did not care. What had caught his attention the most was the profound forlorn look he could see so clearly in her dark depths.

He stood there, not caring about the drizzle that had begun to make his silken locks damp and cling to the sides of his face. His eyes softened at the sight of her.

Because now, he was certain of who she was, the girl who called herself 'Tenten'.

At present she was the precise replica of the woman in the portrait, bearing the most beautiful look of sadness he had ever seen. Sadness with a speck merged with a desperate yearning, which made her eyes glisten beautifully in the silvery ribbons of moonlight.

But then the spell she had cast upon him faded when he remembered how suspicious he had become of her upon accidentally hearing her phone conversation. Here he had been searching for anything that would make the mansion unsafe, and found Tenten. He almost laughed at the irony.

Neji did not let go of his suspicions. His instincts were never incorrect – Tenten had an ulterior motive in joining the Dark Coven.

As much as he wanted to disbelieve it, there could have been a high possibility that Tenten was working for Madara Uchiha. She had not done anything that could have been considered a threat to Sakura...yet. However, maybe she had been waiting for the right time to strike.

Neji frowned again.

He did not care by what means, but he was determined that he would unmask her true intentions...

* * *

Azami wrapped the bowl of soup in the cloth carefully so that it would be perfectly balanced when being held. Then she handed the sack of vegetables, meat and rice to Akihito.

"I'll accompany you to your house and make a nice supper for your Obaa-san while she has this soup, alright?" she said to the boy before informing her father about her departure and destination.

Akihito's grandmother showed her gratefulness to Azami with warm smiles, despite her poor health. And Azami had taken a liking to the old woman. She was quite the chatterbox and Azami enjoyed hearing her stories about when she had been a young woman.

"Would you like me to help you with that, dear?" she offered, eyeing the vegetables on the table.

"It is fine, Baa-san. You need your rest at this time. Besides, I can manage," Azami answered with a reassuring smile.

"Alright, dear. But it's getting quite late and I'd hate for you to be travelling at this hour."

"I'm almost done," Azami informed and continued with her voluntary task.

After she had prepared supper for Akihito and his grandmother, Azami joined them before packing her things to travel back home. She left after short goodbyes, well wishes and the promise to return the next day.

The journey back home involved a few moment's stroll in the forest which was by now, enveloped in the harpooning darkness of the night. The only light source was provided by the moon which barely streamed through the few parted leaves from the canopies made by the towering trees.

Now Azami wished she had walked with something that could be of some use in self-defense.

Suddenly her mind began playing tricks on her. At every turn, there seemed to be shadows, lurking behind trees, whispers heard in every breath of wind, footsteps hidden in the rustle of the leaves. Now, the unexpected hooting of an owl was enough to make her heart skip a beat.

The cold wind whistled again and Azami hugged her chest in attempt to keep warm.

When she was met by an eerie silence, Azami missed the hooting, the rustling, the howling of the wind and all the other sounds of the night in the forest. The sudden quietness was as though the creatures of the woods had sensed another presence and had decided to go in hiding; an existence other than herself and a _grave_ one at that.

Then the sound of cracking sticks echoed into the vast darkness ahead of her. Her breath had gotten caught in her throat only for a moment until she had no control over her heavy breathing that she had to place her hand over her mouth to quiet down.

'_I should head back to Akihito's house,' _Azami thought, slowly stepping back.

A bead of sweat trickled down the side of her head.

No, she could not. She was too far ahead to turn back now. And besides, the snakes and other animals would have already picked up on her scent, so the chances of encountering a dangerous, wild animal back there were rather broad.

Then, mustering up some courage, Azami picked up a thick piece of broken branch she had spotted in the moonlight and proceeded.

As she walked further and further ahead, she became welcomed by the unpleasant smell of rust and as she delved deeper, the scent grew even more pungent and upsetting.

With every step, she was met with something new, like the faint heaving noise that became heavier as she drew nearer. Then it occurred to her that the creature could very well be human. Perhaps someone was lost or wounded.

Further on, something finally came into view. The image was not clear in the dim moonlight, but with careful observation for a moment, Azami distinguished a human on his knees, crouching over, and his back facing her.

From his position, Azami inferred that he had been injured, so from a distance, she enquired, "Are you alright?"

When the person ceased breathing heavy breaths and lift his head up a little, she knew that she had gotten his attention.

Everyone had been warned at some point in their life that there was a fine between bravery and folly. Inwardly, she cursed herself, thinking that she certainly had confused courage with stupidity. But there was no turning back now.

Silently, she called onto the Shinto Gods for guidance.

"Get away," the husky voice of the man before her on the forest's floor said. "Get away before you get hurt."

Now all of her fright seemed to have vanquished. She had been right. The man was wounded and helpless. He needed assistance and she was willing to give it.

"Don't be silly," she said to him, walking closer.

"Stop!" he ordered brusquely, causing her to stop in her tracks.

"But you're wounded! You need help!" she protested from where she stood.

"Just get…out of here! I'm weak and cannot control myself," he warned again.

"What are you saying?" Azami asked, getting closer, "What do you mean you can't 'control yourself'?"

She placed her hand on his shoulder and turned him around to see his face, with much force as he had been restraining his body's movement. And when his face came into view, she became appalled. It was shocking that his face belonged to none other than the man who had saved her and Akihito earlier in the day; and that it was different from before.

He was much paler, as though he was the body of a deceased man. But his eyes – they were what frightened her the most, for they were gleaming red like the blood that covered his hands. She must have been staring at him wide-eyed for a rather long time since she had not even realized when his crimson orbs shifted into gaze with her emerald ones; and she did not even know when he had grabbed a hold of her wrist.

Her heart was now racing; _pounding_ within her chest, beating harder with every few seconds that went by.

"Foolish woman," he said to her when she finally attempted to break free, but he held on effortlessly. "You didn't heed my warning and now I cannot let you go. You've seen too much."

His voice no longer held that alluring deepness, but rather a sinister tone that blatantly defined danger. She was now a fawn trapped in the death-promising hold of ferocious tiger.

"So you're just going to kill me…_Itachi-san_?" she questioned calmly, using his name for the first time since they had encountered each other again.

"It's my only option," he stated casually, "If I don't, you'll inform the villagers of my unusual characteristics."

"Don't act as if you know me. Maybe if you had decided to remove yourself from the forest's main path, I would not have come across you, offering to help you," she said to him in a composed manner, eyeing the iron rod sticking out of his leg and then his bloodied hands.

"Allow me to treat your wound, and I promise that I won't tell anyone about you," Azami then said when Itachi uttered nothing.

To Azami's surprise, Itachi chuckled. It was not threatening like his tone before, but seemingly _amused_. Then with a small smirk, he said to her, "You are in no position to lay down conditions for me, your _captor,_ and yet here you are boldly stating them, ignoring your current circumstance."

He then released her wrist, the action surprising her further, but she kept the feeling hidden.

"Very well," Itachi continued, "But you must keep to your word."

Without saying anything, Azami got to Itachi's level and set aside her belongings before examining his wound further. During that time, she could feel his unwavering gaze on her.

"Could you stop staring?" she requested when the feeling got overbearing. He did not take his eyes off her right away, but he respected her plea without question.

"How could this have happened?" she asked about the wound.

"I accidentally ran into an animal trap," Itachi explained the reason for the iron rod's presence in his left thigh.

Honestly, to Azami, Itachi did not appear as the careless type who would clumsily walk straight into an animal trap. From their very first encounter, Azami knew that he was much mature and much cautious. She was intelligent enough to pick up on that. So right away, she assumed he was lying, admitted nothing.

"You don't believe me, but it's the truth," Itachi suddenly said, as though he had read her mind. Or had he?

She let the idea slide and drew her concentration back to his injury. Judging by the amount of blood that stained his kukuri-bakama [Japanese pants], Itachi seemed to be in this state for some time. But having lost so much blood how was he still alive?

"I'll need to pull this out," she told him, referring to the rod. She sounded her questions only in her mind since somehow, she had the gut feeling that the less she knew was better.

He allowed her to pull out the rod, and when its presence became absent from his thigh, the bleeding, as expected, began seeping through the cut immediately. His face, which was supposed to show some sign of pain, remained emotionless. To her it was strange and she wondered if there was the possibility that he was just so good at containing his outward expression, or if he felt absolutely no pain at all.

When she proceeded to tear off a considerable portion of her shibiradatsu-mono [skirt-wrap], he placed his bloodied hand on hers and said, "There's no need. The bleeding will stop very soon, now that the rod has been removed. Arigato gozaimasu."

"Are you insane? No wound as big as that can possibly heal if you just leave it like that!" she argued in disbelief.

"Hasn't it occurred to you by now that I'm not-" he began in a harsh tone, but discontinued.

"Not human?" she supplied when he remained silent, "In fact it has. But that's none of my business."

She felt his eyes on her as though they had invisibly brushed against her cheek.

"You can leave now. After the cut heals, I can manage on my own," Itachi assured, but to Azami it sounded more like a command.

She gathered her things and hesitantly stood up.

"Are you sure, Itachi-san?" she asked once more, but only got a glare in response.

So she left, wordlessly, trotting down the path and forcefully trying to fight the urge to turn around...

* * *

"I'm dreaming," Sakura muttered softly, through the limited amount of awareness present in her mind. And slowly she willed herself to complete consciousness, managing to capture almost her entire dream within her memory. It was like a story, smoothly flowing from the previous one.

The dreams seemed relaxing, although she experienced them as 'Azami'; however they proved to be rather informative at the same time. Perhaps she may catch on to something important from them in the future. Or at least, she hoped.

Sitting up on the mattress, she wondered about the time. How much had gone by since she had last been awake?

She rubbed her eyes and lazily threw her legs off the bed.

'_Come to think of it...how did I get here?' _Sakura thought, looking around her dark room.

Once again, Sakura recalled the prior series of events in her head.

'_Did...did Sasuke bring me here?' _she wondered.

Sakura toggled her memory for some time but could get no recollection of how she ended up in her room.

Not bothering to fuss about such trivial things, Sakura reminded herself that she needed to talk to someone about the sword. Sasuke's sword played a vital role in the war against Madara. The Prophecy even stated that she must wield the sword in order to bring the enemy to his demise.

"_Idiotic newborn, this is not the way you shall wield me!"_

Perhaps she had been holding the sword incorrectly, Sakura thought. Maybe there was a way to avoid being repelled by the sword.

'_I need to see Sasuke,' _Sakura decided.

But, upon becoming aware of her appearance – she had still been dressed in Sasuke's jacket and a hospital robe –, Sakura thought that a refreshing bath and more suitable clothes were much needed...

* * *

**A/N: Hello everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? I kind of gave up editing this chapter so if you find any errors, please excuse them. I'm never writing a chapter THIS long again. The longest you'll ever get is 8,000 words from now on. I'll re-edit this chapter some time soon, so bare with the errors for now. **

**On my new Live Journal page, I post up previews and updates on upcoming chapters, so feel free to check in for those. The link is available on my profile page. **

**-IzWinchesterDevil**


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